Isro is sending ‘water bears’ to space with Axiom-4: But what makes them so special?

As India’s astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla heads to the International Space Station on the Axiom-4 mission, he won’t be alone — a group of nearly indestructible micro-animals called tardigrades, or 'water bears', are going along too. But why are these microscopic creatures part of India’s space research? Here’s everything you need to know

Explainers