Scientists from Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Science have found a desert moss, Syntrichia caninervis, which is able to withstand Mars-like conditions, including drought, high levels of radiation and extreme cold.

Writing in the journal The Innovation, researchers describe how the desert moss not only survived but rapidly recovered from almost complete dehydration. It was also able to regenerate under normal growth conditions after spending up to five years at -80 degrees Celsius and up to 30 days at -196 degrees Celsius, and after exposure to gamma rays, with doses of around 500Gy even promoting new growth.

The team then designed an environment mimicking Mars with similar pressures, temperatures, gases and UV radiation. They observed that the moss not only survived in the Mars-like setting but also regenerated under standard growth conditions.

This study sets a new record for extreme life forms' tolerance to the environment, inspiring human exploration of outer space and the creation of habitable planets, and contributing to the establishment of a new ecosystem on Mars by humans.