NASA astronaut and Expedition 68 Flight Engineer Woody Hoburg rides the Canadarm2 robotic arm while maneuvering a roll-out solar array toward the International Space Stations truss structure 257 miles above the Pacific Ocean. In the rear, is the SpaceX Dragon crew vehicle that docked to the Harmony modules forward port on March 3, 2023 carrying four SpaceX Crew-6 crew members. NASAShareFar away from Earth, theres an entire intriguing world of microbes to explore. Aboard the International Space Station (ISS), quasi-extraterrestrial life is growing and replicating. Viruses, bacteria, and fungi carried on the bodies of astronauts, building materials, and food all make their way to the ISS despite best efforts to avoid contamination. Once aboard, certain microbes thrive, but a new study suggests it might not be the most ideal mix.The space stations microbiome represents an artificial extreme. Itlacks diversity and contains a disproportionate amount of antimicrobial resistance genes, according to research published February 27 in the journal Cell. At the same time, the ISS is full of unique and mysterious chemical compounds. Get the Popular Science newsletter Breakthroughs, discoveries, and DIY tips sent every weekday. By signing up you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.Together, the research team suggests these two factors may be contributing to the ailments and immune dysfunction many astronauts experience on the job. Skin rashes, sudden allergies, hypersensitivity, and re-emerging latent viruses like the kind that cause mononucleosis and herpes are common among space crews. A better understanding of the microbial and chemical conditions of space infrastructure could help engineers and scientists make improvements, and keep space-faring humans healthier in the future.What are astronauts exposed to? That was really the question being asked, Pieter Dorrestein, a co-senior study author, chemist and microbiologist at the University of California San Diego, tells Popular Science. This is particularly important as were starting to think about long-term space travel, or maybe even inhabiting other planets, he says.Surface swabsTo explore the question, Dorrestein and his collaborators analyzed 737 surface swabs collected by astronauts from the United States Orbital Segment of the ISS, cataloging the microbes and chemicals collected in each sample. They then compared that dataset with control samples and prior data taken from different environments on Earth.They noted many interesting finds and patterns, but above all, they found a dearth. Theres what astronauts are exposed to, and then what they arent. One way to describe the ISS environment is an extreme absence of molecules and microbes, Dorrestein says.Thats not to say the entire ISS was uniform. The team found that , despite a shared air system and the close quarters, different modules within the space station had notably different microbial and molecular profiles. An areas function was the biggest determiner of the germ and chemical cocktail lingering on surfaces. For example, the h module used for cooking and dining was host to more food-derived microbes. The module that houses the waste and hygiene compartment contained more germs associated with human feces and chemical signatures of urine.But overall, the scientists documented low microbial diversity across surfaces in the United States Orbital Segment, compared with samples from Earth. The microbes found aboard the ISS encompassed only about 6 percent of the major clades on the bacterial phylogenetic tree. By comparison, homes on Earth host between 10 and 15 percent of these clades and outdoor environments nearly 30. Positioned along the spectrum of known microbiomes, the space station most closely resembles that of a COVID-19 isolation dorm or a highly sanitized hospital.Forever chemicals in spaceAs you might expect, the kinds of microbes present in natural settings were largely missing. Instead, most of the bacteria, fungi, viruses, and other microorganisms were those associated with the human body. The most prevalent bacterial genus was staphylococcus, which generally lives on human skin and in our mucus membranes.The notable gaps in the space microbiome could be cause for concern, according to the study. Its well known that exposure to a wide array of microorganisms plays a role in immune system health. People who grow up in relatively aseptic city apartments are more likely to develop asthma and allergies than those who spend their childhoods on farms, for instance. Its possible that going without key microbial exposure for months at a time might trigger astronauts immune systems to malfunction.Among the microbes that were found, the scientists identified more than 1,000 genes for antimicrobial resistance (AMR) circulating in more than 90 percent of the samples. It is a lot. It is an increase over terrestrial environments, Dorrestein says. AMR genes, alone, arent necessarily a problem. However, if theyre acquired by a human pathogen, it could spell serious illness for space travelers.The space stations chemical profile proved a little more difficult to pin down. The researchers found hundreds of molecules in their chemical samples, but could only identify a small fraction. For 65 percent, the researchers were unable to even trace likely sources, let alone determine structure. If were going to understand space travel, we need to be able to [better understand] these molecules, says Dorrestein.Of the identified compounds, most were from bacterial sources (the products of standard germ metabolism). Others came from food, personal care products, cleaning supplies, or building materials. Notably, the scientists found industrial chemicals like PFAS and phthalates which are known to have negative human health effects. Despite the difficulty in identifying most of the chemicals, what could be distinguished echoed the molecular conditions of a highly urbanized, synthetic environment. These findings further position the ISS as an extreme, human-input-dominated built environment, the authors wrote in the study.While the presence of certain chemicals is cause for concern, Dorrestein notes that the lack of certain other compounds could pose its own risk. Though less studied than microbiomes, molecular diversity may also confer health benefits. For example, certain dietary compounds are known to interact with gut bacteria to offer an immune boost, he explains. More research would be needed to understand how the specific chemical context of the ISS is impacting astronauts.Rub some dirt in itHowever, one chemical finding stands out. In Node 3, the zone astronauts use for exercise and bathroom purposes, the chemical profile included a strong signal of cleaning products and disinfectants. At the same time, this node had the most diverse microbial environment signaling a potential relationship between constant cleaning and microbe growth. Dorrestein notes the causality is unclear. It could be that theres more germs, and so the area is cleaned more frequently. Or, it might be that frequent cleaning fosters an environment where no single bug can take over. Though diverse microbiomes are good in many contexts, that might not be the case here, where many of the microbes seem to be evolving and passing around genes for antimicrobial resistance. Frequent disinfection could be upping the likelihood of hard-to-treat pathogens emerging.Thankfully, the study offers one potential way forward: Add some dirt. Introducing an environmental non-saline soil matrix could potentially alter the microbial composition of industrialized built environments, including the ISS, to align more closely with the microbial communities found in environmentally exposed habitats, write the researchers.Thats a very roundabout, technical way of saying that (thoughtfully) bringing some literal Earth to space might make the conditions healthier for humans, Dorrestein explains.He doesnt envision laying down shovel-fulls of compost on the ISS floor, but perhaps sterilized, then carefully re-inoculated soil could be used to grow plants and spread beneficial microbes for the astronauts benefit. Fermented foods like natto and kombucha might help too, he suggests. And alternate, less harsh and more probiotic cleaning methods may be another tool.Yet, to truly determine the best ways to boost space immunity, maximize astronaut health, and enable planetary exploration, more research is needed. The scientists view this work as a starting point. Our study really creates a resource to continuously learn from. Theres a lot of signals we detect that we dont yet know how to interpret, Dorrestein says. We still have a lot to learn about the microbes and chemicals in space travel.

The eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 CE presented its surrounding ancient Roman communities with a number of terrifying ways to die: falling debris, collapsing buildings, asphyxiation from superheated dust plumes, etc.. And while attention is often focused on the destruction of Pompeii and its thousands of victims, the fate of nearby Herculaneum wasnt much better. According to recent analysis of unique samples recovered from the seaside archeological site, the Vesuvius eruption even caused one persons brain to flash-fry into a rare form of organic glass.The theory, laid out in a study published February 27 in the journal Scientific Reports, is based on examinations of tiny shards found in 2020 inside the skull and spinal column of an individual at Herculaneuma small port town with a population of around 5,000 people at the time. The victim is believed to have been a roughly 20-year-old man who worked as a guard at the Collegium Augustalium, a public building dedicated to worshipping Emperor Augustus. At the time of his death, however, the guard was laying in his bedand it was this environment that likely fostered the extremely specific conditions needed for brain and spinal fluid vitrification.Annotated image of the remains of the deceased individual in situ in their bed in the Collegium Augustalium, Herculaneum. This is a section of Fig. 1 from the published article. Credit: Guido Giordanoet al. / Scientific Reports While glass is a foundational component in many industries today, it only naturally occurs in rare circumstances. This is because glass is only created when its liquid state cools fast enough to prevent crystallization as it solidifies. In order to accomplish this, there must be a major temperature difference between the substance itself and its environment. Not only that, but the liquid material must also solidify at a much higher temperature than its surroundings. Because most organic matter is largely water, conditions rarely allow for natural glass formation given its freezing point.It would therefore be impossible to find organic glass embedded in volcanic deposits that have reached several hundred of Celsius degrees, wrote the studys authors.Using X-ray analysis and electron microscopy, the team confirmed the guards brain could only have turned to glass if it was heated well above 950 degrees Fahrenheit (510 degrees Celsius) before quickly cooling. But the majority of the eruptions known after-effects cannot account for brain and spinal fluid vitrification. The eruptions pyroclastic flows, for example, did not exceed 869 (465 ) and cooled far too slowly to create the glass.The study authors therefore concluded that the body was exposed to the passage and vanishing of a short-lived, dilute and much hotter pyroclastic flow that offered an early, quick flash-heating before subsequent rapid cooling.The glass that formed as a result of such a unique process attained a perfect state of preservation of the brain and its microstructures, they wrote, adding that it is now the only such occurrence known on Earth. And according to Guido Giordano, the studys lead author at Italys Universit Roma Tre, its unlikely they will find another example anytime soon. Get the Popular Science newsletter Breakthroughs, discoveries, and DIY tips sent every weekday. By signing up you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.In principle it is possible. There is more to be excavated below the modern city that may have preserved a similar occurrence, Giordano tells Popular Science. However conditions must have been very, very specific because the organic tissue must have experienced a heating fast enough not to entirely destroy it (which is instead the most common occurrence) and then fast-cool to turn into glass.Giordano believes the building and room in which the guard died offered just the right conditions. But if additional brain glass is to be found, it will be in the ruins of Herculaneum and not Pompeii.Such [a] hot ash cloud hit Herculaneum during the night when Pompeii was still under the fallout of pumice, he says. The early pyroclastic flows arrived and buried Pompeii the day after, but at lower temperatures.

The eruption of Mount Vesuvius in A.D. 79 is perhaps most famous for entombing the Roman city of Pompeii. But in nearby Herculaneum, also buried in the eruption, the preserved skeleton of a young man lying in bed contained a surprising find: glass remnants of his brain.When researchers studied the shiny samples, they saw what appeared to be nerve cells. A new study now uncovers more details into how the glass may have formed, the team reports February 27 in Scientific Reports.Glass forms when a liquid usually molten sand is quickly cooled. Thats how manufacturers make windows and cups. The process can also occur naturally, like when lighting strikes a sandy desert, forming lumps of glass called fulgurites. Before the young Romans brain remnants were discovered, however, glassy biological soft tissues had not been found in nature, the researchers say.When we realized that there was really a glassy brain, the scientific question was: how is it possible? says Guido Giordano, a geologist and volcanologist at Roma Tre University.Giordano and colleagues used a technique called differential scanning calorimetry, which involved heating the already glassy brain shards, to determine the temperature at which the glass had formed. The shards underwent structural changes at temperatures over 510 Celsius (950 Fahrenheit), suggesting thats the temperature the brain tissue hit originally to turn to glass.The researchers reasoned that the swift onslaught of hot volcanic ash, rock and gas that entombed Herculaneum could not have been responsible for turning the brain chunks to glass. Similar pyroclastic flows have been found to max out at 465 C and would not have cooled fast enough to turn brain to glass. Instead, a much hotter ash cloud probably hit the young man and dissipated fast, allowing for the necessary cooling. Only later were the remains buried in the thick volcanic debris, the team says.So why didnt the young mans brain completely disintegrate in the extreme heat? His skull may have had something to do with it, the researchers suggest. The bones may have protected against direct contact with the ash cloud.

With air filters and weekly wipe-downs and vacuuming, NASA goes to great lengths to keep the International Space Station clean so that astronauts stay healthy. But astronauts still often experience health problems like immune dysfunction, skin rashes and other inflammatory conditions. One reason may be because the ISS might be too clean, a new study suggests.Microbes, tiny living organisms like bacteria and viruses, play an important role in human health. But samples of surfaces in the ISS reflect a striking lack of microbial diversity, Rodolfo Salido Bentez, a bioengineer at University of California, San Diego, and colleagues report February 27 in Cell.Astronauts swabbed surfaces in the kitchen, bathroom, dining space and other areas on the ISS. They then sent the 803 samples to Benitez and colleagues for analysis.The ISS has lower microbial diversity than most buildings on Earth. And nearly all of those microbes come from humans and building materials, while less than 0.3 percent are from natural environmental sources like soil and water. Like most indoor environments on Earth, the vast majority of microbes originate from human skin.Inside and outside the body, microbes compete for resources and space, so maintaining a diverse set keeps any one of them from taking over and causing an health problems. Low microbial diversity in hospitals, for example, leads to a higher risk of infection. Even the microbes in your house can affect your health. One study found that Amish communities have a lower risk of asthma than other communities with similar lifestyles because their household dust contains microbes from farm animals.A bag full of custom-made sampling devices used to collect surface swabs throughout the International Space Station floats in the cupola, an observing area for activities outside the station. NASAIf were outside, were generally exposed to a lot more microbial diversity from touching animals or soil, says Sean Gibbons, a microbiome researcher at the Institute for Systems Biology in Seattle. When were inside, these walls, these surfaces are acting like mirrors. Theyre essentially reflecting back upon us our own microbial diversity.Maintaining a healthy diversity of microbes in confined spaces will be a growing concern as astronauts spend more time in space and new missions begin. Scientists will need to test new ways of adding more good germs to the mix, like bringing animals aboard or stocking the ISS pantry with fermented foods, says Pieter Dorrestein, a chemical biologist at UC San Diego.The reality is that were going to inhabit space at some point, so this work will give us the first insight in terms of the things that we need to add and remove, Dorrestein says. The most important message that we can pass on is how important is to not only look at whats present, but also whats absent.

Nature, Published online: 27 February 2025; doi:10.1038/d41586-025-00576-4The months sharpest science shots, selected by Natures photo team.

Nature, Published online: 27 February 2025; doi:10.1038/s41586-025-08767-9Author Correction: CTLA4 blockade abrogates KEAP1/STK11-related resistance to PD-(L)1 inhibitors

The new study on the "glass brain" from Herculaneum is the latest episode in a long-running academic dispute.

AWS's first-ever quantum chip uses "cat qubits" to reduce errors exponentially as more qubits are added to a system. Scientists say it will lead to scalable and efficient quantum computers.

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