Mission Possible

It was a sort of Mission Impossible, to quote the famous Hollywood movie, even a decade back to even think of reproduction beyond the earth, in outer space miles away from this planet. But researchers have now found that human sperm retains its complete viability within the different gravitational conditions found in outer space. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, called a zillionaire, sees the colonization of outer space as an answer to the earth’s ever-threatening resources. Well, could reproduction beyond the earth be a boost to such super-ambitions? In the research in question, the sperm analysis comprised a full range of measurements currently performed on fertility testing – concentration, motility, vitality, morphology and DNA fragmentation – and the results found no difference whatsoever in any of the parameters between the microgravity space samples and the control group samples from the earth. The really good news is that there was 100 per cent concordance in vitality and DNA fragmentation. Which means “it’s not unreasonable to start thinking about the possibility of reproduction beyond the earth”, to quote Montserrat Boada of the Dexeus Women’s Group in Barcelona that worked with microgravity engineers from the Polytechnic University of Barcelona for the research on sperm in outer space. There is no doubt that this is a huge human ambition – rather, aspiration – to go somewhere far away from the earth in man’s quest to colonize space in order to flee the earth because its resources will no longer suffice human wants! This is not a leaf out of any Isaac Asimov science fiction series but human creativity at work so as to face the challenges of the future – there are so many daunting and seemingly unsurpassable among them – and live innovatively in clusters of space stations and whatever else there might be as a result of technological marvels. Hail the human spirit then!