Mouse Gives Birth To Healthy Offspring After Space Mission Aboard China’s Space Station

In a groundbreaking achievement, a female mouse has given birth to healthy offspring after being part of a recent space mission aboard China’s space station. The remarkable event has significant implications for future research into the effects of space travel on mammalian reproduction. The mouse, one of four sent into space on October 31 aboard the Shenzhou-21 crewed spaceship, was housed in a specialized habitat on the space station before returning to Earth on November 14. After a successful conception, the female mouse delivered nine pups on December 10, with six of the newborns surviving – a rate considered normal.

Researchers at the Institute of Zoology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) have observed that the mother is nursing normally, and the pups appear active and healthy. According to Wang Hongmei, a researcher at the Institute of Zoology of the CAS, “This mission showed that short-term space travel did not impair the reproductive capability of the mouse.

It also provides invaluable samples for the investigation of how the space environment influences early developmental stages in mammals.” The mission faced unexpected challenges, including a change in the return schedule of the Shenzhou-20 mission, which led to a food shortage for the mice toward the end of their time in orbit.