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Tardigrade

10 days

Exposed to open space in 2007

Confirmed Survival · Verified 2026-10-27 · WWV-AN-010

In September 2007 dried-out tardigrades (water bears) rode on the European Space Agency's FOTON-M3 mission and spent 10 days exposed to the vacuum and radiation of space. Many survived, some even endured strong solar ultraviolet light, and survivors went on to reproduce.

They survived in a dried, dormant state. That does not make them indestructible in every setting.

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