Posted by Two weeks ago the University of Colorado College of Engineering sent two orb weaving spiders up in the space shuttle. The spiders’ web building behavior was observed and streamed back to earth, serving as a classroom tool for teaching fifth though ninth graders about the effects of zero gravity. Great idea. Except when scientists opened up the second spider’s box, they found it had escaped. Thus began the plot to a perfect B- Sci-Fi/Horror flick. Unfortunately for all of us safely earthbound observers, the other spider turned up in its buddy’s box shortly thereafter, having succeeded only in giving the astronaut crew zero-gravity willies.
While technologically superior to earth spiders, space spiders have not yet mastered web building:
I, for one, could have done without the Eensy Weensy Spider remake.
Previous NASA arthropod research did not fare as well:
December 1, 2008
December 1, 2008
December 1, 2008
December 1, 2008
December 2, 2008
December 2, 2008
April 12, 2009
July 2, 2012
July 6, 2012