Astronauts bring back new life

Astronauts bring back new life It is not every day that astronauts can claim to return to Earth with a new species of life. But when the astronauts on ESA's CAVES underground training course returned to the surface they were carrying a special type of woodlouse. CAVES training sends astronauts from all the International Space Station partner nations underground for a week to learn about working in multi-cultural teams under extreme conditions. During their six-night stay in caves in Sardinia, Italy, their scientific research included meteorology, surveying, geology and cataloguing underground life. "Every year we scout the area to prepare for the training mission," says Loredana Bessone, course designer and project manager. "This year, we noticed interesting-looking crustaceans in a small pond." Laying bait The astronauts set bait near the pond and in other places to attract and identify as many life forms as possible. ESA astronaut Andreas Mogensen recalls: "We set four lures in pre-defined areas and had two mobile baits that we placed in areas of interest." Cave scientists usually leave bait for three weeks.