Late last month the Genesis II Pathfinder spacecraft was delivered into orbit and along with it went a bold group of unwitting arthropods. Bigelow Aerospace was founded in 1999 with the vision of creating orbital hotels for "space tourists." In an equally lucrative move, this Space Camp for bugs was conceived by Robert Bigelow, the company's founder and namesake, while on vacation.
In the middle of last year, he called his payload team into a room and showed them five dirt-filled containers. Inside each one was an entire colony of ants that he had coaxed, prodded and pried from the ground into buckets. In a moment of brilliance, he informed the hapless rocket scientists that they must figure out how to include an ant farm on their rocket. When they protested, he released the hounds.
The Biobox comprises $40,000 in Capsela toys
With renewed enthusiasm, the program grew to include a variety of arthropods, including scorpions, hissing cockroaches, Mexican Jumping Beans and Pogonomyrmex californicus, a local ant variety. Apparently, the critters exhibited the "right stuff," undergoing the well funded, grown-up version of putting a bug under a magnifying glass:
We placed these animals in sealed environments to collect data on oxygen consumption, carbon dioxide emission, temperature and humidity; built terrariums decorated with rocks and tree bark; tested them for interspecies compatibility; froze them; fed them water-retaining crystals, dog food, rodent food and meal worms; made them climb lattices of strings; and tagged them with paints and rhinestones. Our arthroponauts amazed us with their ability to adapt and survive under pressure. We at Zooillogix really appreciate the "rhinestone" touch.
Much like the Apollo 11 mission, some have questioned whether the program was really scientifically necessary and not politically motivated. Bigelow Aerospace only fuels speculation with statements like this: "More than for any practical applications, Genesis II Biobox was an in-house experiment borne out of our joy for learning." The only way to know for sure is to ask the critters themselves upon their return.
Disturbing footage from onboard the craft
Buy your own, more affordable (and debatably cooler) Biobox here!
Zooillogix
Don't Stick Your Fingers in the Cage
Search this blog
Video of the Week
Cormorant Fishing
Bleiman Brothers Profile

In the wild, Andrew feeds on fish, sponges, small crustaceans, nematode worms and protozoans.

Benny's diet is very specialized, consisting mainly of the interior of Ramy nuts, nectar from the Traveller's Palm tree, some fungi and insect grubs. He is also known to raid coconut plantations, and has been seen eating lychees and mangoes, which are also plantation crops.
Recent Posts
- Have Giant Indian Catfish Developed a Taste for Human Flesh?
- Donors Choose Reminder
- Banksy Opens Pet Shop in NYC
- Deepest Living Fish Discovered
- Fungus Amongus
- Dow Jones Average for Endangered Animals
- Mark Wahlberg Talks to Animals
- Impressive Right Whale Photography
- Epic Guinness Evolution Commercial
- Buy Critters for Elementary School Classrooms!
Recent Comments
- Abby on Donors Choose Reminder
- Dog-geek on Have Giant Indian Catfish Developed a Taste for Human Flesh?
- tai haku on Have Giant Indian Catfish Developed a Taste for Human Flesh?
- Fred on Mantis Pics
- Brett Patterson on Miniature Pigs: Pets of the Future
- ihealth on Fungus Amongus
- Gorgia SMITH on New Species of Sea Slug Discovered in Qatar
- boomy on Fungus Amongus
- milkshake on Fungus Amongus
- Angie on Miniature Pigs: Pets of the Future
Archives
- October 2008
- September 2008
- August 2008
- July 2008
- June 2008
- May 2008
- April 2008
- March 2008
- February 2008
- January 2008
- December 2007
- November 2007
- October 2007
- September 2007
- August 2007
- July 2007
- June 2007
- May 2007
- April 2007
- March 2007
Donate!
Blogroll
Look How Important We Are
View blog authority
Read the super-informative Interview with the Bleiman Brothers
World's Largest Zoo and Shot Glass Collection
Now accepting donations in exchange for recognition and fame on Zooillogix!
Currently Featured: Santa Barbara Zoo generously donated by Papa Bleiman.
The List:
Adventure Aquarium
Baton Rouge Zoo
Bronx Zoo
Brookfield Zoo
Cincinnati Zoo
Cleveland Metroparks Zoo
Florida Aquarium
Georgia Aquarium
Knoxville Zoo
Lincoln Park Zoo
Maritime Center in Norwalk, CT
Monterey Bay Aquarium
Mystic Aquarium
New England Aquarium
New York Aquarium
Newport Aquarium
Philadelphia Zoo
Ripley's Aquarium of the Smokies
San Diego Zoo
San Francisco Zoo
Santa Barbara Zoo
Sea World San Diego
Shedd Aquarium
Smithsonian National Zoo
South Carolina Aquarium
Tennessee Aquarium
Feed me Seymour!
« British Did Not Release Man-Eating Badgers in Iraq | Main | Monster Chimps Not a Myth Afterall »
The Genesis II Spacecraft & Its Intrepid Arthronauts
Category: antfarm • ants • biobox • cockroaches • dangerous space alien • scorpion
Posted on: July 13, 2007 9:00 PM, by ableiman





Having problems commenting? (UPDATED)