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otter

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The ISS is 'too clean', and it could be making astronauts sick (www.abc.net.au)

submitted 2 days ago by otter to c/[email protected]

48 comments fedilink hide all child comments

Summary from elsewhere

The International Space Station (|SS) has low microbial diversity, which could lead to astronaut health issues, according to a study published in Cell.

Researchers found that the microbial communities resemble those found in sanitized environments like hospitals rather than natural settings.

Co-senior study author Pieter Dorrestein explains that increasing microbial exposure could improve astronaut health during long-term space travel.

The study suggests incorporating natural elements, like soil, into the ISS to enhance microbial diversity and astronaut well-being.

The study in question:

https://www.cell.com/cell/fulltext/S0092-8674(25)00108-4

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[–] [email protected] 18 points 2 days ago (1 children)

To be honest: I don't think that's much of a problem (unless...). The pathogens on earth are all adapted to attack (if you want to use this verb on a cellular level) us and others on earth. They would most likely not pose a threat to any other lifeforms that have evolved on other planets, unless our way of evolution is the only one which is able to produce life. And that is a big unless, because apart from the panspermia theory (life came to us with a meteor) there is no reason to assume that life has to work the same way it does for us.

[–] otter 6 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Time travel interactions however, those could be a problem

[–] [email protected] 3 points 2 days ago

The main issue to conquer once we are able to go back, is how to go back without dieing or killing off a significant fraction of our ancestors, creating temporal paradox.