The survival of terrestrial microorganisms in space at orbital altitudes during Gemini satellite experiments.

In a previous series of rocket- and satellite-borne experiments, microorganisms were exposed to space between altitudes of 60 to 460 km for periods between 3 minutes and 4 months. The results showed that some of the unprotected microorganisms survived the direct exposure for up to 17 hours. Complete survival was found when the microorganisms were shielded from nonpenetrating radiation. These results made it desirable to systematically study the lethal influence of the space environment on a wider spectrum of unprotected microorganisms over various exposure periods. This communication presents the results of exposure experiments on board the Gemini XII satellite. The microorganisms were dried on plastic coated aluminum plates using techniques which will be described elsewhere. During the flight of the Gemini XII space capsule, the microorganisms were directly exposed to space for approximately 6 1/2 hours. After the successful completion of the Gemini XII mission the payload was returned to the laboratory for elution and titration of the microorganisms using techniques described elsewhere. The results showed that again survival of some microorganisms had occurred. An attempt is made to integrate these results with data obtained in previously published experiments.