A tardigrade (commonly known as a water bear) is a microscopic animal, and the first animal to survive space. They can survive anything – sub-zero temperatures, oxygen-deprived vacuums, and unrelenting solar winds.
Project Biokis, sponsored by the Italian Space Agency, sent these microscopic organisms into space on Monday on the NASA shuttle Endeavour.
More info: http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/12855775