Microbe-wave: radiation-resistant microbes in microwaves

<!doctype html> <html lang="en-AU" prefix="og: https://ogp.me/ns#" class="site"> <head> <meta charset="utf-8"> <meta http-equiv="x-ua-compatible" content="ie=edge"> <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1, shrink-to-fit=no"> <link rel="icon" href="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/ret_img/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/themes/cosmos/dist/images/favicon.svg?v=a905cf20" data-spai-egr="1" sizes="any" type="image/svg+xml" /> <link rel="apple-touch-icon" sizes="180x180" href="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/q_lossy+ret_img+to_auto/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/themes/cosmos/dist/images/apple-touch-icon.png?v=0025be9a" data-spai-egr="1" /> <link rel="icon" type="image/png" sizes="48x48" href="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/q_lossy+ret_img+to_auto/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/themes/cosmos/dist/images/favicon-48x48.png?v=17a9d6dc" data-spai-egr="1" /> <link rel="icon" type="image/png" sizes="32x32" href="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/q_lossy+ret_img+to_auto/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/themes/cosmos/dist/images/favicon-32x32.png?v=af68c5be" data-spai-egr="1" /> <link rel="icon" type="image/png" sizes="16x16" href="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/q_lossy+ret_img+to_auto/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/themes/cosmos/dist/images/favicon-16x16.png?v=b5cd24fd" data-spai-egr="1" /> <link rel="mask-icon" href="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/ret_img/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/themes/cosmos/dist/images/safari-pinned-tab.svg?v=6575e507" data-spai-egr="1" color="#2f76bb" /> <script> var dataLayer = window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; </script> <script> dimensionsData = ({"user_id":null,"country":null}); dimensionsData.event = "user_details"; dataLayer.push(dimensionsData); </script>  <script> (function(w, d, s, l, i) { w[l] = w[l] || []; w[l].push({ 'gtm.start': new Date().getTime(), event: 'gtm.js' }); var f = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0], j = d.createElement(s), dl = l != 'dataLayer' ? '&l=' + l : ''; j.async = true; j.src = 'https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id=' + i + dl; f.parentNode.insertBefore(j, f); })(window, document, 'script', 'dataLayer', 'GTM-5TDDMZV'); let dimensionsData; </script>  <script> dimensionsData = ({"post_type":"post","page_title":"Microbe-wave: radiation-resistant microbes in microwaves","page_location":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/biology/radiation-microbes-microwave/","post_id":309048,"post_category":"behaviour|biology|body-and-mind|science|health|news|people|society","post_primary_category":"biology","revenue_type":"free","contributors":"Imma Perfetto","publish_date":"2024-08-09","publish_time":"16:00","post_tags":"bacteria|kitchen|microbiology|microwave-oven","scroll_page_view":"false","parent_title":"Microbe-wave: radiation-resistant microbes in microwaves","parent_location":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/biology/radiation-microbes-microwave/"}); dimensionsData.event = "page_view"; dataLayer.push(dimensionsData); </script>  <title>Microbe-wave: radiation-resistant microbes in microwaves</title> <meta name="description" content="Microwave ovens harbour a thriving bacterial community adapted to surviving the extreme conditions, according to a new study."/> <meta name="robots" content="follow, index, max-snippet:-1, max-video-preview:-1, max-image-preview:large"/> <link rel="canonical" href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/biology/radiation-microbes-microwave/" /> <meta property="og:locale" content="en_US" /> <meta property="og:type" content="article" /> <meta property="og:title" content="Microbe-wave: radiation-resistant microbes in microwaves" /> <meta property="og:description" content="Microwave ovens harbour a thriving bacterial community adapted to surviving the extreme conditions, according to a new study." /> <meta property="og:url" content="https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/biology/radiation-microbes-microwave/" /> <meta property="og:site_name" content="Cosmos" /> <meta property="article:publisher" content="https://www.facebook.com/CosmosMagazine/" /> <meta property="article:tag" content="bacteria" /> <meta property="article:tag" content="kitchen" /> <meta property="article:tag" content="microbiology" /> <meta property="article:tag" content="microwave oven" /> <meta property="article:section" content="Biology" /> <meta property="og:updated_time" content="2024-08-09T16:01:01+09:30" /> <meta property="og:image" content="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/GettyImages-1697148893_1200.jpg" /> <meta property="og:image:secure_url" content="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/GettyImages-1697148893_1200.jpg" /> <meta property="og:image:width" content="1200" /> <meta property="og:image:height" content="675" /> <meta property="og:image:alt" content="Photograph of a hand using a yellow and green sponge to clean the inside of a dirty microwave." /> <meta property="og:image:type" content="image/jpeg" /> <meta property="article:published_time" content="2024-08-09T16:00:51+09:30" /> <meta property="article:modified_time" content="2024-08-09T16:01:01+09:30" /> <meta name="twitter:card" content="summary_large_image" /> <meta name="twitter:title" content="Microbe-wave: radiation-resistant microbes in microwaves" /> <meta name="twitter:description" content="Microwave ovens harbour a thriving bacterial community adapted to surviving the extreme conditions, according to a new study." /> <meta name="twitter:site" content="@cosmosmagazine" /> <meta name="twitter:creator" content="@cosmosmagazine" /> <meta name="twitter:image" content="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/GettyImages-1697148893_1200.jpg" /> <meta name="twitter:label1" content="Written by" /> <meta name="twitter:data1" content="Imma Perfetto" /> <meta name="twitter:label2" content="Time to read" /> <meta name="twitter:data2" content="1 minute" /> <script type="application/ld+json" class="rank-math-schema-pro">{"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/#organization","name":"Cosmos Magazine","url":"https://cosmosmagazine.com","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/CosmosMagazine/","https://twitter.com/cosmosmagazine"],"logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/#logo","url":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/cosmos-logo.svg","contentUrl":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/cosmos-logo.svg","caption":"Cosmos Magazine","inLanguage":"en-AU","width":"1047","height":"172"}},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/#website","url":"https://cosmosmagazine.com","name":"Cosmos Magazine","publisher":{"@id":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/#organization"},"inLanguage":"en-AU"},{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/GettyImages-1697148893_1200.jpg","url":"/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/GettyImages-1697148893_1200.jpg","width":"1200","height":"675","caption":"Photograph of a hand using a yellow and green sponge to clean the inside of a dirty microwave.","inLanguage":"en-AU"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/biology/radiation-microbes-microwave/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":"1","item":{"@id":"https://cosmosmagazine.com","name":"Cosmos"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":"2","item":{"@id":"/science/biology/","name":"Biology"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":"3","item":{"@id":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/biology/radiation-microbes-microwave/","name":"Microbe-wave: radiation-resistant microbes in microwaves"}}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/biology/radiation-microbes-microwave/#webpage","url":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/biology/radiation-microbes-microwave/","name":"Microbe-wave: radiation-resistant microbes in microwaves","datePublished":"2024-08-09T16:00:51+09:30","dateModified":"2024-08-09T16:01:01+09:30","isPartOf":{"@id":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/GettyImages-1697148893_1200.jpg"},"inLanguage":"en-AU","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/biology/radiation-microbes-microwave/#breadcrumb"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/author/iperfettoriaus-org-au/","name":"Imma Perfetto","url":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/author/iperfettoriaus-org-au/","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/1e2c3d77c99a55e5d7491fb898bf1d6f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/1e2c3d77c99a55e5d7491fb898bf1d6f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Imma Perfetto","inLanguage":"en-AU"},"worksFor":{"@id":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/#organization"}},{"@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"Microbe-wave: radiation-resistant microbes in microwaves","keywords":"microwave","datePublished":"2024-08-09T16:00:51+09:30","dateModified":"2024-08-09T16:01:01+09:30","articleSection":"Behaviour, Biology, Body and Mind, Core Sciences, Health, News, People, Society","author":{"@id":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/author/iperfettoriaus-org-au/","name":"Imma Perfetto"},"publisher":{"@id":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/#organization"},"description":"Microwave ovens harbour a thriving bacterial community adapted to surviving the extreme conditions, according to a new study.","copyrightYear":"2024","copyrightHolder":{"@id":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/#organization"},"name":"Microbe-wave: radiation-resistant microbes in microwaves","@id":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/biology/radiation-microbes-microwave/#richSnippet","isPartOf":{"@id":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/biology/radiation-microbes-microwave/#webpage"},"image":{"@id":"/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/GettyImages-1697148893_1200.jpg"},"inLanguage":"en-AU","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/biology/radiation-microbes-microwave/#webpage"}}]}</script>  <script> function paywall_impression_dataLayer() { dataLayer.push({ 'event': 'paywall_impression', 'paywall_name': '', 'page_location': 'https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/biology/radiation-microbes-microwave/' }); } if (window.location.pathname == '/restricted-content/') { paywall_impression_dataLayer(); } </script>  <noscript><iframe src="https://www.googletagmanager.com/ns.html?id=GTM-5TDDMZV" height="0" width="0" style="display:none;visibility:hidden"></iframe></noscript>  <link rel="stylesheet" href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/cache/minify/5e94f.css?x75256" media="all" /> <style id='safe-svg-svg-icon-style-inline-css' type='text/css'> .safe-svg-cover{text-align:center}.safe-svg-cover .safe-svg-inside{display:inline-block;max-width:100%}.safe-svg-cover svg{height:100%;max-height:100%;max-width:100%;width:100%} </style> <style id='rank-math-toc-block-style-inline-css' type='text/css'> .wp-block-rank-math-toc-block nav ol{counter-reset:item}.wp-block-rank-math-toc-block nav ol li{display:block}.wp-block-rank-math-toc-block nav ol li:before{content:counters(item, ".") ". ";counter-increment:item} </style> <style id='classic-theme-styles-inline-css' type='text/css'> /*! This file is auto-generated */ .wp-block-button__link{color:#fff;background-color:#32373c;border-radius:9999px;box-shadow:none;text-decoration:none;padding:calc(.667em + 2px) calc(1.333em + 2px);font-size:1.125em}.wp-block-file__button{background:#32373c;color:#fff;text-decoration:none} </style> <style id='global-styles-inline-css' type='text/css'> body{--wp--preset--color--black: #000000;--wp--preset--color--cyan-bluish-gray: #abb8c3;--wp--preset--color--white: #ffffff;--wp--preset--color--pale-pink: #f78da7;--wp--preset--color--vivid-red: #cf2e2e;--wp--preset--color--luminous-vivid-orange: #ff6900;--wp--preset--color--luminous-vivid-amber: #fcb900;--wp--preset--color--light-green-cyan: #7bdcb5;--wp--preset--color--vivid-green-cyan: #00d084;--wp--preset--color--pale-cyan-blue: #8ed1fc;--wp--preset--color--vivid-cyan-blue: #0693e3;--wp--preset--color--vivid-purple: #9b51e0;--wp--preset--color--brand-primary: #2f76bb;--wp--preset--color--rackley: #5B92AB;--wp--preset--color--queen-blue: #406E8E;--wp--preset--color--police-blue: #22476B;--wp--preset--color--oxford-blue: #0C2746;--wp--preset--color--light-grey: #e5e5e5;--wp--preset--color--my-cosmos-very-light: #f3f9f9;--wp--preset--color--my-cosmos-light: #00a8a8;--wp--preset--color--my-cosmos-dark: #008294;--wp--preset--color--greenlight-green: #36B34A;--wp--preset--color--greenlight-light-green: #8dc63f;--wp--preset--color--greenlight-dark-green: #0d6c28;--wp--preset--gradient--vivid-cyan-blue-to-vivid-purple: linear-gradient(135deg,rgba(6,147,227,1) 0%,rgb(155,81,224) 100%);--wp--preset--gradient--light-green-cyan-to-vivid-green-cyan: linear-gradient(135deg,rgb(122,220,180) 0%,rgb(0,208,130) 100%);--wp--preset--gradient--luminous-vivid-amber-to-luminous-vivid-orange: linear-gradient(135deg,rgba(252,185,0,1) 0%,rgba(255,105,0,1) 100%);--wp--preset--gradient--luminous-vivid-orange-to-vivid-red: linear-gradient(135deg,rgba(255,105,0,1) 0%,rgb(207,46,46) 100%);--wp--preset--gradient--very-light-gray-to-cyan-bluish-gray: linear-gradient(135deg,rgb(238,238,238) 0%,rgb(169,184,195) 100%);--wp--preset--gradient--cool-to-warm-spectrum: linear-gradient(135deg,rgb(74,234,220) 0%,rgb(151,120,209) 20%,rgb(207,42,186) 40%,rgb(238,44,130) 60%,rgb(251,105,98) 80%,rgb(254,248,76) 100%);--wp--preset--gradient--blush-light-purple: linear-gradient(135deg,rgb(255,206,236) 0%,rgb(152,150,240) 100%);--wp--preset--gradient--blush-bordeaux: linear-gradient(135deg,rgb(254,205,165) 0%,rgb(254,45,45) 50%,rgb(107,0,62) 100%);--wp--preset--gradient--luminous-dusk: linear-gradient(135deg,rgb(255,203,112) 0%,rgb(199,81,192) 50%,rgb(65,88,208) 100%);--wp--preset--gradient--pale-ocean: linear-gradient(135deg,rgb(255,245,203) 0%,rgb(182,227,212) 50%,rgb(51,167,181) 100%);--wp--preset--gradient--electric-grass: linear-gradient(135deg,rgb(202,248,128) 0%,rgb(113,206,126) 100%);--wp--preset--gradient--midnight: linear-gradient(135deg,rgb(2,3,129) 0%,rgb(40,116,252) 100%);--wp--preset--font-size--small: 13px;--wp--preset--font-size--medium: 20px;--wp--preset--font-size--large: 36px;--wp--preset--font-size--x-large: 42px;--wp--preset--spacing--20: 0.44rem;--wp--preset--spacing--30: 0.67rem;--wp--preset--spacing--40: 1rem;--wp--preset--spacing--50: 1.5rem;--wp--preset--spacing--60: 2.25rem;--wp--preset--spacing--70: 3.38rem;--wp--preset--spacing--80: 5.06rem;--wp--preset--shadow--natural: 6px 6px 9px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2);--wp--preset--shadow--deep: 12px 12px 50px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.4);--wp--preset--shadow--sharp: 6px 6px 0px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2);--wp--preset--shadow--outlined: 6px 6px 0px -3px rgba(255, 255, 255, 1), 6px 6px rgba(0, 0, 0, 1);--wp--preset--shadow--crisp: 6px 6px 0px rgba(0, 0, 0, 1);}:where(.is-layout-flex){gap: 0.5em;}:where(.is-layout-grid){gap: 0.5em;}body .is-layout-flow > .alignleft{float: left;margin-inline-start: 0;margin-inline-end: 2em;}body .is-layout-flow > .alignright{float: right;margin-inline-start: 2em;margin-inline-end: 0;}body .is-layout-flow > .aligncenter{margin-left: auto !important;margin-right: auto !important;}body .is-layout-constrained > .alignleft{float: left;margin-inline-start: 0;margin-inline-end: 2em;}body .is-layout-constrained > .alignright{float: right;margin-inline-start: 2em;margin-inline-end: 0;}body .is-layout-constrained > .aligncenter{margin-left: auto !important;margin-right: auto !important;}body .is-layout-constrained > :where(:not(.alignleft):not(.alignright):not(.alignfull)){max-width: var(--wp--style--global--content-size);margin-left: auto !important;margin-right: auto !important;}body .is-layout-constrained > .alignwide{max-width: var(--wp--style--global--wide-size);}body .is-layout-flex{display: flex;}body .is-layout-flex{flex-wrap: wrap;align-items: center;}body .is-layout-flex > *{margin: 0;}body .is-layout-grid{display: grid;}body .is-layout-grid > *{margin: 0;}:where(.wp-block-columns.is-layout-flex){gap: 2em;}:where(.wp-block-columns.is-layout-grid){gap: 2em;}:where(.wp-block-post-template.is-layout-flex){gap: 1.25em;}:where(.wp-block-post-template.is-layout-grid){gap: 1.25em;}.has-black-color{color: var(--wp--preset--color--black) !important;}.has-cyan-bluish-gray-color{color: var(--wp--preset--color--cyan-bluish-gray) !important;}.has-white-color{color: var(--wp--preset--color--white) !important;}.has-pale-pink-color{color: var(--wp--preset--color--pale-pink) !important;}.has-vivid-red-color{color: var(--wp--preset--color--vivid-red) !important;}.has-luminous-vivid-orange-color{color: var(--wp--preset--color--luminous-vivid-orange) !important;}.has-luminous-vivid-amber-color{color: var(--wp--preset--color--luminous-vivid-amber) !important;}.has-light-green-cyan-color{color: var(--wp--preset--color--light-green-cyan) !important;}.has-vivid-green-cyan-color{color: var(--wp--preset--color--vivid-green-cyan) !important;}.has-pale-cyan-blue-color{color: var(--wp--preset--color--pale-cyan-blue) !important;}.has-vivid-cyan-blue-color{color: var(--wp--preset--color--vivid-cyan-blue) !important;}.has-vivid-purple-color{color: var(--wp--preset--color--vivid-purple) !important;}.has-black-background-color{background-color: var(--wp--preset--color--black) !important;}.has-cyan-bluish-gray-background-color{background-color: var(--wp--preset--color--cyan-bluish-gray) !important;}.has-white-background-color{background-color: var(--wp--preset--color--white) !important;}.has-pale-pink-background-color{background-color: var(--wp--preset--color--pale-pink) !important;}.has-vivid-red-background-color{background-color: var(--wp--preset--color--vivid-red) !important;}.has-luminous-vivid-orange-background-color{background-color: var(--wp--preset--color--luminous-vivid-orange) !important;}.has-luminous-vivid-amber-background-color{background-color: var(--wp--preset--color--luminous-vivid-amber) !important;}.has-light-green-cyan-background-color{background-color: var(--wp--preset--color--light-green-cyan) !important;}.has-vivid-green-cyan-background-color{background-color: var(--wp--preset--color--vivid-green-cyan) !important;}.has-pale-cyan-blue-background-color{background-color: var(--wp--preset--color--pale-cyan-blue) !important;}.has-vivid-cyan-blue-background-color{background-color: var(--wp--preset--color--vivid-cyan-blue) !important;}.has-vivid-purple-background-color{background-color: var(--wp--preset--color--vivid-purple) !important;}.has-black-border-color{border-color: var(--wp--preset--color--black) !important;}.has-cyan-bluish-gray-border-color{border-color: var(--wp--preset--color--cyan-bluish-gray) !important;}.has-white-border-color{border-color: var(--wp--preset--color--white) !important;}.has-pale-pink-border-color{border-color: var(--wp--preset--color--pale-pink) !important;}.has-vivid-red-border-color{border-color: var(--wp--preset--color--vivid-red) !important;}.has-luminous-vivid-orange-border-color{border-color: var(--wp--preset--color--luminous-vivid-orange) !important;}.has-luminous-vivid-amber-border-color{border-color: var(--wp--preset--color--luminous-vivid-amber) !important;}.has-light-green-cyan-border-color{border-color: var(--wp--preset--color--light-green-cyan) !important;}.has-vivid-green-cyan-border-color{border-color: var(--wp--preset--color--vivid-green-cyan) !important;}.has-pale-cyan-blue-border-color{border-color: var(--wp--preset--color--pale-cyan-blue) !important;}.has-vivid-cyan-blue-border-color{border-color: var(--wp--preset--color--vivid-cyan-blue) !important;}.has-vivid-purple-border-color{border-color: var(--wp--preset--color--vivid-purple) !important;}.has-vivid-cyan-blue-to-vivid-purple-gradient-background{background: var(--wp--preset--gradient--vivid-cyan-blue-to-vivid-purple) !important;}.has-light-green-cyan-to-vivid-green-cyan-gradient-background{background: var(--wp--preset--gradient--light-green-cyan-to-vivid-green-cyan) !important;}.has-luminous-vivid-amber-to-luminous-vivid-orange-gradient-background{background: var(--wp--preset--gradient--luminous-vivid-amber-to-luminous-vivid-orange) !important;}.has-luminous-vivid-orange-to-vivid-red-gradient-background{background: var(--wp--preset--gradient--luminous-vivid-orange-to-vivid-red) !important;}.has-very-light-gray-to-cyan-bluish-gray-gradient-background{background: var(--wp--preset--gradient--very-light-gray-to-cyan-bluish-gray) !important;}.has-cool-to-warm-spectrum-gradient-background{background: var(--wp--preset--gradient--cool-to-warm-spectrum) !important;}.has-blush-light-purple-gradient-background{background: var(--wp--preset--gradient--blush-light-purple) !important;}.has-blush-bordeaux-gradient-background{background: var(--wp--preset--gradient--blush-bordeaux) !important;}.has-luminous-dusk-gradient-background{background: var(--wp--preset--gradient--luminous-dusk) !important;}.has-pale-ocean-gradient-background{background: var(--wp--preset--gradient--pale-ocean) !important;}.has-electric-grass-gradient-background{background: var(--wp--preset--gradient--electric-grass) !important;}.has-midnight-gradient-background{background: var(--wp--preset--gradient--midnight) !important;}.has-small-font-size{font-size: var(--wp--preset--font-size--small) !important;}.has-medium-font-size{font-size: var(--wp--preset--font-size--medium) !important;}.has-large-font-size{font-size: var(--wp--preset--font-size--large) !important;}.has-x-large-font-size{font-size: var(--wp--preset--font-size--x-large) !important;} .wp-block-navigation a:where(:not(.wp-element-button)){color: inherit;} :where(.wp-block-post-template.is-layout-flex){gap: 1.25em;}:where(.wp-block-post-template.is-layout-grid){gap: 1.25em;} :where(.wp-block-columns.is-layout-flex){gap: 2em;}:where(.wp-block-columns.is-layout-grid){gap: 2em;} .wp-block-pullquote{font-size: 1.5em;line-height: 1.6;} </style> <style id='woocommerce-inline-inline-css' type='text/css'> .woocommerce form .form-row .required { visibility: visible; } </style> <link rel="stylesheet" href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/cache/minify/20adf.css?x75256" media="all" /> <script src="/wp-includes/js/jquery/jquery.min.js?x75256&ver=3.7.0"></script><script defer src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/cache/minify/63b1f.js?x75256"></script> <noscript><style>.woocommerce-product-gallery{ opacity: 1 !important; }</style></noscript> <meta name="onesignal" content="wordpress-plugin"/> <script> window.OneSignal = window.OneSignal || []; OneSignal.push( function() { OneSignal.SERVICE_WORKER_UPDATER_PATH = 'OneSignalSDKUpdaterWorker.js'; OneSignal.SERVICE_WORKER_PATH = 'OneSignalSDKWorker.js'; OneSignal.SERVICE_WORKER_PARAM = { scope: '/wp-content/plugins/onesignal-free-web-push-notifications/sdk_files/push/onesignal/' }; OneSignal.setDefaultNotificationUrl("https://cosmosmagazine.com"); var oneSignal_options = {}; window._oneSignalInitOptions = oneSignal_options; oneSignal_options['wordpress'] = true; oneSignal_options['appId'] = '320b1551-21ef-49e1-b09c-5a188d0478da'; oneSignal_options['allowLocalhostAsSecureOrigin'] = true; oneSignal_options['welcomeNotification'] = { }; oneSignal_options['welcomeNotification']['title'] = ""; oneSignal_options['welcomeNotification']['message'] = ""; oneSignal_options['path'] = "https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/plugins/onesignal-free-web-push-notifications/sdk_files/"; oneSignal_options['safari_web_id'] = "web.onesignal.auto.4345f3b9-0648-4376-838e-008c1d802430"; oneSignal_options['promptOptions'] = { }; oneSignal_options['promptOptions']['actionMessage'] = "Get an update of science stories with push notifications. You can unsubscribe at any time."; oneSignal_options['notifyButton'] = { }; oneSignal_options['notifyButton']['enable'] = true; oneSignal_options['notifyButton']['position'] = 'bottom-left'; oneSignal_options['notifyButton']['theme'] = 'default'; oneSignal_options['notifyButton']['size'] = 'medium'; oneSignal_options['notifyButton']['displayPredicate'] = function() { return OneSignal.isPushNotificationsEnabled() .then(function(isPushEnabled) { return !isPushEnabled; }); }; oneSignal_options['notifyButton']['showCredit'] = false; oneSignal_options['notifyButton']['text'] = {}; oneSignal_options['notifyButton']['colors'] = {}; oneSignal_options['notifyButton']['colors']['circle.background'] = '#2f76bb'; oneSignal_options['notifyButton']['colors']['circle.foreground'] = 'white'; oneSignal_options['notifyButton']['colors']['pulse.color'] = '#2f76bb'; oneSignal_options['notifyButton']['colors']['dialog.button.background'] = '#2f76bb'; oneSignal_options['notifyButton']['colors']['dialog.button.background.active'] = '#2f76bb'; OneSignal.init(window._oneSignalInitOptions); OneSignal.showSlidedownPrompt(); }); function documentInitOneSignal() { var oneSignal_elements = document.getElementsByClassName("OneSignal-prompt"); var oneSignalLinkClickHandler = function(event) { OneSignal.push(['registerForPushNotifications']); event.preventDefault(); }; for(var i = 0; i < oneSignal_elements.length; i++) oneSignal_elements[i].addEventListener('click', oneSignalLinkClickHandler, false); } if (document.readyState === 'complete') { documentInitOneSignal(); } else { window.addEventListener("load", function(event){ documentInitOneSignal(); }); } </script> <script type="text/javascript" id="spai_js" data-cfasync="false"> document.documentElement.className += " spai_has_js"; (function(w, d){ var b = d.getElementsByTagName('head')[0]; var s = d.createElement("script"); var v = ("IntersectionObserver" in w) ? "" : "-compat"; s.async = true; // This includes the script as async. s.src = "https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/assets/js/bundles/spai-lib-bg" + v + ".1.1.min.js?v=3.8.0"; w.spaiDomain = "cdn.shortpixel.ai"; w.spaiData = { version: "3.8.0", key: "spai", quality: "lossy", convert: "auto", lqip: false, rootMargin: "500px", crop: true, sizeBreakpoints: {"on":false,"base":50,"rate":10}, backgroundsMaxWidth: 1920, resizeStyleBackgrounds: true, nativeLazyLoad: false, safeLazyBackgrounds: true, asyncInitialParsing: true, debug: false, doSelectors: [{"selectors":"img","type":"attr","targetAttr":"src","attrType":"url","lazy":true,"resize":true},{"selectors":"[data-spai-bg-on]","type":"attr","targetAttr":"style","attrType":"style"},{"selectors":"style","type":"inner","attrType":"style"}], exclusions: {"selectors":{".cta-and-payment-methods img":{"lazy":1,"cdn":1,"resize":0,"lqip":0,"crop":-1},"img.zoomImg":{"lazy":1,"cdn":1,"resize":0,"lqip":0,"crop":-1}},"urls":[]}, sizeFromImageSuffix: true }; b.appendChild(s); }(window, document)); </script> <style type="text/css" id="wp-custom-css"> /*.home-banner { background-image: url("data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCAxIDEiIHdpZHRoPSIxIiBoZWlnaHQ9IjEiIGRhdGEtdT0iaHR0cHMlM0ElMkYlMkZjb3Ntb3NtYWdhemluZS5jb20lMkZ3cC1jb250ZW50JTJGdXBsb2FkcyUyRjIwMjElMkYwOSUyRkZvc3NpbF9OaWxwZW5hLmpwZyIgZGF0YS13PSIxIiBkYXRhLWg9IjEiIGRhdGEtYmlwPSIiPjwvc3ZnPg=="); }*/ .cross-sells { display:none; } .woocommerce .cart-collaterals .cart_totals, .woocommerce-page .cart-collaterals .cart_totals { float: left; } section.article-container.cart-page .woocommerce .wc-proceed-to-checkout { text-align: left; } section.article-container.cart-page .woocommerce .give_wc_donation_section_td { display: none; } p.mailchimp-newsletter { display:none; } p.add-latest-issue { display:none; } .is-provider-crowdsignal amp-iframe { display: none; } body:not(.amp-mode-touch) .hide-if-not-amp { display: none; } #place_order:hover { background: unset; } </style> <script async src="https://t.atmng.io/consent/stub.js"></script> <script async src="https://t.atmng.io/qvty/WiEbuew5P.prod.js"></script>  <script> var adUnits = adUnits || []; adUnits = adUnits.concat([{auId:'00000000001fc2ca',auW:'0',auH:'250',mediaType:'mobile',postId:309048,targetId:'adn-00000000001fc2ca-i0p0',requestParams:{proximity:800,load:'lazyRequest'}},{auId:'00000000001fc2ca',auW:'0',auH:'250',mediaType:'mobile',postId:309048,targetId:'adn-00000000001fc2ca-i1p0',requestParams:{proximity:800,load:'lazyRequest'}},{auId:'00000000001fc2cc',auW:'300',auH:'250',mediaType:'desktop',refresh:{delay:30,count:5,event:'onViewable'},targetId:'adn-00000000001fc2cc-i0p0',requestParams:{proximity:800,load:'lazyRequest'}},{auId:'00000000001fc737',auW:'320',auH:'50',mediaType:'mobile',refresh:{delay:30,count:5,event:'onViewable'},targetId:'adn-00000000001fc737-i0p0',requestParams:{proximity:800,load:'lazyRequest'}},{auId:'000000000023d099',auW:'970',auH:'90',mediaType:'desktop',refresh:{delay:30,count:5,event:'onViewable'},targetId:'adn-000000000023d099-i0p0',requestParams:{proximity:800,load:'lazyRequest'}},{auId:'000000000023d09a',auW:'300',auH:'250',mediaType:'mobile',refresh:{delay:30,count:5,event:'onViewable'},targetId:'adn-000000000023d09a-i0p0',requestParams:{proximity:800,load:'lazyRequest'}},{auId:'00000000001fc2bd',auW:'970',auH:'90',mediaType:'desktop',targetId:'adn-00000000001fc2bd-i0p0',refresh:{delay:30,count:5,event:'onViewable'},requestParams:{proximity:800,load:'lazyRequest'}}]); </script> <script> let adUnitsServed = []; let adUnitDivParentClassArray = []; var adUnits = adUnits || []; requestThirdPartyAds = (adUnits, adUnitsPrevious) => { let adUnitsFiltered = adUnits.filter(function(adUnit) { if (!adUnit.mediaType || adUnit.mediaType === 'all') { return true; } if (isMobileDevice()) { return adUnit.mediaType !== 'desktop'; } else { return adUnit.mediaType !== 'mobile'; } }); if (JSON.stringify(adUnitsFiltered) === JSON.stringify(adUnitsServed)) { return adUnitsFiltered; } adUnitsFiltered = adUnitsFiltered.filter(function(adUnit) { return !adUnitsServed.some(function(adUnitServed) { return JSON.stringify(adUnit) === JSON.stringify(adUnitServed) }); }); if (adUnitsFiltered.length === 0) { return adUnitsFiltered; } let adUnitsToRequest = []; adUnitsToRequest = JSON.parse(JSON.stringify(adUnitsFiltered)); adUnitsToRequest.forEach(function(adUnitToRequest) { delete adUnitToRequest.mediaType; }); window.adn = window.adn || {}; adn.calls = adn.calls || []; adn.calls.push(function() { adn.requestAds({ adUnits: adUnitsToRequest }); }); if (window.location.hostname !== 'cosmosmagazine.com') { console.log('Ad units requested: ', adUnitsFiltered); if (isMobileDevice()) { console.log("Mobile device detected."); } else { console.log("Desktop device detected."); } } adUnitsServed = adUnitsServed.concat(adUnitsFiltered); return adUnitsServed; }; function isMobileDevice() { let userAgent = navigator.userAgent || navigator.vendor || window.opera; let windowWidth = window.innerWidth; if (windowWidth > 1100) { return false; } if (/windows phone/i.test(userAgent)) { return true; } if (/android/i.test(userAgent)) { return true; } if (/iPad|iPhone|iPod/.test(userAgent) && !window.MSStream) { return true; } if (windowWidth < 1100) { return true; } return false; } adUnitsServed = requestThirdPartyAds(adUnits, adUnitsServed); </script> <link rel="preconnect" href="https://use.typekit.net" crossorigin> <link rel="preconnect" href="https://chimpstatic.com" crossorigin> <link rel="preconnect" href="https://connect.facebook.net" crossorigin> <link rel="preconnect" href="https://vars.hotjar.com" crossorigin> <link rel="preconnect" href="https://script.hotjar.com" crossorigin> <link rel="preconnect" href="https://static.hotjar.com" crossorigin> <link rel="preconnect" href="https://www.googletagmanager.com" crossorigin> <link rel="preconnect" href="https://cdn.adnuntius.com" crossorigin> <link rel="preconnect" href="https://t.atmng.io" crossorigin> <link rel="preconnect" href="https://cdn.onesignal.com" crossorigin> <link rel="preconnect" href="https://www.google-analytics.com" crossorigin> <link rel="preconnect" href="https://s3.amazonaws.com" crossorigin> <script> // console log the user's IP address for debugging purposes console.log('User IP Address: 8.222.208.146'); console.log('User has IP Access: '); console.log('User has Access (IP or subscription): '); </script> <link href="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai" rel="preconnect" crossorigin><style id="spai_bg_lazr">html.spai_has_js [data-spai-bg-on]:not([data-spai-bg-prepared]){background-image: none !important;}</style></head> <body class="post-template-default single single-post postid-309048 single-format-standard wp-custom-logo theme-cosmos/resources woocommerce-no-js radiation-microbes-microwave biology behaviour body-and-mind science health news people society non-member app-data index-data singular-data single-data single-post-data single-post-radiation-microbes-microwave-data"> <div id="wrapper" class="wrap container" role="document"> <header class="banner Fixed">  <div class="advert full-width-advert ad-page-top ad-desktop auh-90"><div id="adn-00000000001fc2bd-i0p0" style="display: none"></div></div> <div class="container"> <div class="header-upper"> <div class="header-menu-wrapper"> <ul class="cols-all-gap"> <li class="col login"> <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/account/">LOG IN</a> </li> <li class="col signup"> <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/subscribe-now" class="signup-header">SIGN UP</a> </li> <li class="col search" id="magnifying-glass__icon"> <a class="open-search-form" href="#search-form" aria-label="Article Search Icon Link"> <svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="white" stroke-width="4" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round"> <circle cx="11" cy="11" r="8"></circle> <line x1="21" y1="21" x2="16.65" y2="16.65" stroke-width="5"></line> </svg> </a> </li> <li class="col menu-cart"> <a aria-label="Cart link Icon" class="menu-cart-icon" href='https://cosmosmagazine.com/checkout/' > <svg width="100%" height="100%" viewBox="0 0 34 28" version="1.1" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xml:space="preserve" xmlns:serif="http://www.serif.com/" style="fill-rule:evenodd;clip-rule:evenodd;stroke-linejoin:round;stroke-miterlimit:2;"> <g> <path d="M23.951,22.432C23.951,22.871 23.589,23.227 23.143,23.227C22.703,23.23 22.339,22.872 22.335,22.432L22.335,15.75C22.335,15.31 22.697,14.954 23.143,14.954C23.589,14.954 23.951,15.31 23.951,15.75L23.951,22.432ZM17.808,22.432C17.808,22.871 17.446,23.227 17,23.227C16.56,23.23 16.196,22.872 16.192,22.432L16.192,15.75C16.192,15.31 16.554,14.954 17,14.954C17.446,14.954 17.808,15.31 17.808,15.75L17.808,22.432ZM11.665,22.432C11.665,22.871 11.303,23.227 10.857,23.227C10.417,23.23 10.053,22.872 10.049,22.432L10.049,15.75C10.049,15.31 10.411,14.954 10.857,14.954C11.303,14.954 11.665,15.31 11.665,15.75L11.665,22.432ZM17,2.557L22.744,10.181L11.256,10.181L17,2.557ZM32.32,10.181L25.159,10.181L17.786,0.394L17.78,0.386L17.773,0.38C17.755,0.357 17.737,0.334 17.717,0.313L17.687,0.28L17.65,0.247C17.629,0.229 17.608,0.211 17.586,0.195L17.576,0.187C17.502,0.133 17.42,0.09 17.334,0.059L17.322,0.054C17.295,0.045 17.268,0.037 17.24,0.03L17.232,0.027C17.208,0.021 17.184,0.017 17.159,0.013L17.14,0.01L17.081,0.004L17.047,0L16.952,0C16.944,0 16.937,0.002 16.929,0.003C16.905,0.004 16.882,0.007 16.858,0.01L16.853,0.01C16.698,0.034 16.55,0.094 16.423,0.187L16.415,0.193C16.392,0.21 16.37,0.228 16.349,0.247C16.337,0.257 16.326,0.269 16.314,0.281C16.304,0.291 16.292,0.301 16.282,0.313C16.262,0.334 16.244,0.357 16.226,0.38L16.22,0.386L16.214,0.394L8.841,10.181L1.681,10.181C0.497,10.181 -0.315,11.354 0.118,12.438L3.773,26.045C4.149,27.211 5.244,28.005 6.47,28L27.53,28C28.767,28 29.86,27.208 30.227,26.045L33.882,12.438C34.315,11.354 33.502,10.181 32.32,10.181Z" /> </g> </svg> </a> </li> </ul> <div class="search-form-modal"> <div class="search-close"></div> <div class="search-container"> <div class="search-form__ui"> <div class="search-form__input-wrapper" id="searchInput"></div> <button class="search-form__button">SEARCH</button> </div> <div class="search-form__results" id="headerSearchHits"></div> <div class="search-form__view-more"> <span>View More Results</span> </div> </div> </div> <script> document.addEventListener('DOMContentLoaded', function() { let searchViewMore = document.querySelector('.search-form__view-more'); let seachInput = document.getElementById('searchInput'); // If algoliasearch is not defined. This is the case when the Algolia scripts are not loaded. (e.g. on single post pages for page speed optimisation). if (typeof algoliasearch === 'undefined') { // Add an input field to the search form seachInput.innerHTML = ` <div class="ais-SearchBox"><form action="" role="search" class="ais-SearchBox-form" novalidate=""> <input class="ais-SearchBox-input" type="search" placeholder="Search The Archives" autocomplete="off" autocorrect="off" autocapitalize="off" spellcheck="false" maxlength="512"> </form></div>`; searchViewMore.style.display = 'none'; } document.querySelectorAll('.search-form__button, .search-form__view-more').forEach( function(triggerEl) { triggerEl.addEventListener('click', function() { let searchQuery = triggerEl.parentNode.querySelector( 'input').value; document.location.href = '/search?query=' + searchQuery; }); }); document.querySelectorAll('.ais-SearchBox-input').forEach(function(inputEl) { inputEl.addEventListener('keydown', function(ev) { if (ev.key === 'Enter') { ev.preventDefault(); let searchQuery = ev.currentTarget.value; document.location.href = '/search?query=' + searchQuery; } }); }); }); </script> </div> </div> <div class="primary-menu-wrapper"> <div class="hamburger hamburger--collapse" type="button" aria-label="Mobile Menu" role="button" tabindex="1" onClick="document.getElementById('primary-menu').classList.toggle('active');" on="tap:primary-menu.toggleClass(class=active)"> </div> <a class="brand" href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/"> <img src="data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCA4MzkgMTUxIiB3aWR0aD0iODM5IiBoZWlnaHQ9IjE1MSIgZGF0YS11PSIlMkZ3cC1jb250ZW50JTJGdXBsb2FkcyUyRjIwMjQlMkYwMyUyRkNvc21vc19sb2dvX3doaXRlLnN2ZyIgZGF0YS13PSI4MzkiIGRhdGEtaD0iMTUxIiBkYXRhLWJpcD0iIj48L3N2Zz4=" data-spai="1" alt="Cosmos" width="200" height="50"><noscript data-spai="1"><img src="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/ret_img/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Cosmos_logo_white.svg" data-spai-egr="1" alt="Cosmos" width="200" height="50"></noscript> </a> <div class="nav-wrapper"> <nav id="primary-menu" class="nav-primary"> <div class="primary-menu__background" onClick="document.getElementById('primary-menu').classList.toggle('active');" on="tap:primary-menu.toggleClass(class=active)"> </div> <div class="mobile-menu-actions"> <div class="mobile-search-toggle" onclick="(function() { document.getElementById('primary-menu').classList.remove('active'); document.getElementById('mobile-search').classList.add('active'); document.getElementById('mobile-search-input').focus(); })()" on="tap:primary-menu.toggleClass(class=active, force=false),mobile-search.toggleClass(class=active, force=true),mobile-search-input.focus"> SEARCH</div> <div class="mobile-account-button"> <a href="/account"> LOG IN </a> </div> </div> <ul id="menu-main-menu" class="nav"><li id="menu-item-1329" class="space-border menu-item menu-space"><a href="/space/">Space</a></li> <li id="menu-item-27168" class="technology-border menu-item menu-tech"><a href="/technology/">Tech</a></li> <li id="menu-item-1321" class="nature-border menu-item menu-nature"><a href="/nature/">Nature</a></li> <li id="menu-item-33108" class="earth-border menu-item menu-earth"><a href="/earth/">Earth</a></li> <li id="menu-item-1302" class="history-border menu-item menu-history"><a href="/history/">History</a></li> <li id="menu-item-1325" class="current-post-ancestor current-post-parent people-border menu-item menu-people"><a href="/people/">People</a></li> <li id="menu-item-1313" class="current-post-ancestor current-post-parent health-border menu-item menu-health"><a href="/health/">Health</a></li> <li id="menu-item-1335" class="current-post-ancestor current-post-parent science-border menu-item menu-core-sciences"><a href="/science/">Core Sciences</a></li> <li id="menu-item-311423" class="menu-item menu-newsletters"><a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/newsletter/">Newsletters</a></li> <li id="menu-item-311215" class="menu-item menu-subscribe-now"><a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/subscribe-now/">Subscribe Now</a></li> </ul> </nav> <div class="secondary-menu-wrapper "> <nav id="secondary-menu"> <ul> <li class="science-border"> <a href="/science/biology/">Biology</a> </li> <li class="science-border"> <a href="/science/chemistry/">Chemistry</a> </li> <li class="science-border"> <a href="/science/engineering/">Engineering</a> </li> <li class="science-border"> <a href="/science/mathematics/">Mathematics</a> </li> <li class="science-border"> <a href="/science/physics/">Physics</a> </li> </ul> </nav> </div> </div> </div> </div> </header> <div class="secondary-menu-wrapper duplicate-secondary-nav"> <nav id="secondary-menu"> <ul> <li class="science-border"> <a href="/science/biology/">Biology</a> </li> <li class="science-border"> <a href="/science/chemistry/">Chemistry</a> </li> <li class="science-border"> <a href="/science/engineering/">Engineering</a> </li> <li class="science-border"> <a href="/science/mathematics/">Mathematics</a> </li> <li class="science-border"> <a href="/science/physics/">Physics</a> </li> </ul> </nav> </div> <div id="mobile-search" class="mobile-search"> <form class="mobile-search__form" action="/search/" method="GET"> <input id="mobile-search-input" class="mobile-search__input" name="query" placeholder="Search..." aria-label="Search Input" /> <button class="mobile-search__button" aria-label="Search Button" title="Search" role="button"> <svg width="28" height="28" viewBox="0 0 28 28"> <path fill-rule="nonzero" d="M12 0c6.627417 0 12 5.372583 12 12 0 3.2085154-1.2592234 6.1229233-3.3104309 8.2759846.0054641.0049849.0115296.0109006.0175377.0169086l5.6568542 5.6568543c.3905243.3905243.3905243 1.0236892 0 1.4142135-.3905243.3905243-1.0236892.3905243-1.4142135 0l-5.6568543-5.6568542c-.0339069-.0339069-.0648699-.069643-.0928889-.1068905C17.1949096 23.1071552 14.7017223 24 12 24 5.372583 24 0 18.627417 0 12S5.372583 0 12 0zm0 2C6.4771525 2 2 6.4771525 2 12s4.4771525 10 10 10 10-4.4771525 10-10S17.5228475 2 12 2z"> </path> </svg> </button> </form> </div> <div class="content"> <main class="main rows-gap margin-top-1 margin-bottom-1"> <nav aria-label="breadcrumbs" class="rank-math-breadcrumb"><p><a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com">Cosmos</a><span class="separator"> » </span><a href="/science/biology/">Biology</a></p></nav> <section class="article-container cols-4 md-cols-1 cols-gap-1 padding-bottom-4"> <article class="col col-span-3 post-309048 post type-post status-publish format-standard has-post-thumbnail hentry category-biology category-behaviour category-body-and-mind category-science category-health category-news category-people category-society tag-bacteria tag-kitchen tag-microbiology tag-microwave-oven"> <header class="rows rows-gap"> <h1 class="entry-title row">Microbe-wave: radiation-resistant microbes in microwaves</h1> <div class="row primary-image has-featured-image " data-featured-image="GettyImages-1697148893_1200.jpg"> </div> </header> <div class="entry-content cols-6 md-cols-1 cols-gap-1 margin-top-1"> <div class="content-left-sidebar cols-1 col"> <section class="contributors md-cols-1 rows-gap"> <div class="row post-date"> <span class="published-date">August 9, 2024</span> </div> <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/contributor/imma-perfetto/" class="author row md-hide"> <img src="data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCA3MzAgNzMwIiB3aWR0aD0iNzMwIiBoZWlnaHQ9IjczMCIgZGF0YS11PSIlMkZ3cC1jb250ZW50JTJGdXBsb2FkcyUyRjIwMjIlMkYxMSUyRmltbWEuanBnIiBkYXRhLXc9IjczMCIgZGF0YS1oPSI3MzAiIGRhdGEtYmlwPSIiPjwvc3ZnPg==" data-spai="1" alt="Imma Perfetto" width="200" /><noscript data-spai="1"><img src="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/q_lossy+ret_img+to_auto/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/imma.jpg" data-spai-egr="1" alt="Imma Perfetto" width="200" /></noscript> <div class="bio"> <h3>Imma Perfetto</h3> <p>Cosmos science journalist</p> </div> </a> <div id="author-name" class="hide"> <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/contributor/imma-perfetto/" class="bio"> By Imma Perfetto </a> </div> <div class="favourite__wrapper row cols"> <button class="showDialog simplefavorite-button" aria-label="Favourite button"> </button> </div> </section> </div> <div class="primary-content cols-1 col-span-5 col"> <div class="flexible-content "> <div class="copy"> <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" fetchpriority="high" width="850" height="567" src="data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCA4NTAgNTY3IiB3aWR0aD0iODUwIiBoZWlnaHQ9IjU2NyIgZGF0YS11PSIlMkZ3cC1jb250ZW50JTJGdXBsb2FkcyUyRjIwMjQlMkYwOCUyRkdldHR5SW1hZ2VzLTE2OTcxNDg4OTNfODUwLmpwZyIgZGF0YS13PSI4NTAiIGRhdGEtaD0iNTY3IiBkYXRhLWJpcD0iIj48L3N2Zz4=" data-spai="1" alt="Photograph of a hand using a yellow and green sponge to clean the inside of a dirty microwave." class="wp-image-309052" title="microbe-wave: radiation-resistant microbes in microwaves 1"><noscript data-spai="1"><img decoding="async" fetchpriority="high" width="850" height="567" src="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/q_lossy+ret_img+to_auto/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/GettyImages-1697148893_850.jpg" data-spai-egr="1" alt="Photograph of a hand using a yellow and green sponge to clean the inside of a dirty microwave." class="wp-image-309052" srcset="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/q_lossy+ret_img+to_auto/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/GettyImages-1697148893_850.jpg 850w, https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/q_lossy+ret_img+to_auto/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/GettyImages-1697148893_850-600x400.jpg 600w, https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/q_lossy+ret_img+to_auto/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/GettyImages-1697148893_850-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/q_lossy+ret_img+to_auto/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/GettyImages-1697148893_850-300x200.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px" title="microbe-wave: radiation-resistant microbes in microwaves 1"></noscript><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Credit: Kinga Krzeminska/Getty Images</figcaption></figure> <p><a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/technology/hot-stuff-the-physics-of-microwave-ovens/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Microwave ovens</a> harbour a thriving bacterial community adapted to surviving the extreme conditions, according to a <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/microbiology/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2024.1395751/full" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">new study</a> in the journal <em>Frontiers in Microbiology</em>.</p> <p>The microbiomes in some microwaves are similar to those found on solar panelsThe authors propose this is due to constant thermal shock, electromagnetic radiation, and desiccation (extreme drying) selecting for highly resistant bacteria.</p> <p>The findings have important implications for hygiene. It could also inform the development of biotechnology if the strains found in microwaves can be used for processes that require hardy bacteria.</p> <p>“Our results reveal that domestic microwaves have a more ‘anthropised’ microbiome, similar to <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/news/the-surprising-structural-reason-your-kitchen-sponge-is-so-disgusting/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">kitchen</a> surfaces, while laboratory microwaves harbor bacteria that are more resistant to radiation,” says co-author Daniel Torrent, a researcher at Darwin Bioprospecting Excellence SL in Spain.</p> <p>Torrent and collaborators swabbed the inside of microwaves from single-family domestic homes, shared spaces (such as cafeterias), and molecular biology and microbiology laboratories. They identified the types of bacteria present by cultivating microbes on different media and using genomic sequencing.</p> <div class="in-content-area related-box-wrapper content-third content-right margin-bottom-1"> <div class="gradient-title">Read More</div> <ul class="related-box article-listing"> <li class="cols"> <div class="article article-post"> <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/news/the-surprising-structural-reason-your-kitchen-sponge-is-so-disgusting/" class="thumbnail ar-16-9" aria-label="Article link"> <span data-spai-bg-on="1" class="image" style="background-image: url(data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCAxMjAwIDY3NSIgd2lkdGg9IjEyMDAiIGhlaWdodD0iNjc1IiBkYXRhLXU9Imh0dHBzJTNBJTJGJTJGY29zbW9zbWFnYXppbmUuY29tJTJGd3AtY29udGVudCUyRnVwbG9hZHMlMkYyMDIyJTJGMDIlMkZDcmVkaXQtRnJhbmNlc2NvLVNjYXRlbmEtR2V0dHktSW1hZ2VzLTEyMDAuanBnIiBkYXRhLXc9IjEyMDAiIGRhdGEtaD0iNjc1IiBkYXRhLWJpcD0iIj48L3N2Zz4=)"></span> </a> <div class="article-content has-very-light-grey-background-color"> <a href="/news/"> <span class="category news-color"> News </span> </a> <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/news/the-surprising-structural-reason-your-kitchen-sponge-is-so-disgusting/"> <h3>The surprising structural reason your kitchen sponge is so disgusting</h3> </a> </div> </div> </li> </ul> </div> <p>This revealed some overlap in the bacterial communities of domestic homes and shared spaces. In reassuring news, home microwaves showed the lowest bacterial diversity.</p> <div class="advert ad-in-content ad-mobile auh-250"><div id="adn-00000000001fc2ca-i0p0" style="display: none"></div></div> <p>“Some species of genera found in domestic microwaves, such as <em>Klebsiella, Enterococcus</em> and <em>Aeromonas</em>, may pose a risk to human health,” says Torrent.</p> <a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/OP59" class="newsletter-cta" data-device="mobile"> <img decoding="async" src="data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCAzMDAgMjUwIiB3aWR0aD0iMzAwIiBoZWlnaHQ9IjI1MCIgZGF0YS11PSIlMkZ3cC1jb250ZW50JTJGdXBsb2FkcyUyRjIwMjQlMkYwMyUyRldlZWtseS1DYXRjaHVwLTMwMHgyNTAtMS5wbmciIGRhdGEtdz0iMzAwIiBkYXRhLWg9IjI1MCIgZGF0YS1iaXA9IiI+PC9zdmc+" data-spai="1" alt="Newsletter" title="microbe-wave: radiation-resistant microbes in microwaves 2"><noscript data-spai="1"><img decoding="async" src="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/q_lossy+ret_img+to_auto/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Weekly-Catchup-300x250-1.png" data-spai-egr="1" alt="Newsletter" title="microbe-wave: radiation-resistant microbes in microwaves 2"></noscript> </a> <p>“However, it is important to note that the microbial population found in microwaves does not present a unique or increased risk compared to other common kitchen surfaces.”</p> <p>Lab microwaves, however, had a very distinct composition which the authors say underscores the influence of usage patterns on microbial communities.</p> <p>“Household microwaves, enriched in food-associated genera, reflected their primary culinary use, while laboratory microwaves harboured radiation-, desiccation-, and high temperature-resistant taxa, indicating prolonged exposure to microwave radiation and suggesting a selective pressure of such harsh factors in shaping the distinctive microbial profile we found,” the study authors write.</p> <p>The researchers’ recommendation remains the same for both the general public and laboratory personnel: regularly disinfecting microwaves with a diluted bleach solution or a commercially available disinfectant spray.</p> <div class="advert ad-in-content ad-mobile auh-250"><div id="adn-00000000001fc2ca-i1p0" style="display: none"></div></div> <p>“In addition, it is important to wipe down the interior surfaces with a damp cloth after each use to remove any residue and to clean up spills immediately to prevent the growth of bacteria,” says Torrent.</p> <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/O5bE"><p align="center"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCA3MjggMjI1IiB3aWR0aD0iNzI4IiBoZWlnaHQ9IjIyNSIgZGF0YS11PSJodHRwcyUzQSUyRiUyRmNvc21vc21hZ2F6aW5lLmNvbSUyRndwLWNvbnRlbnQlMkZ1cGxvYWRzJTJGMjAyNCUyRjAzJTJGRGFpbHktRG9zZS1OZXdzbGV0dGVyX0Nvc21vc19FbWJlZF83Mjh4MjI1LmpwZyIgZGF0YS13PSI3MjgiIGRhdGEtaD0iMjI1IiBkYXRhLWJpcD0iIj48L3N2Zz4=" data-spai="1" alt="Sign up to our weekly newsletter" width="600" height="154" title="microbe-wave: radiation-resistant microbes in microwaves 3"><noscript data-spai="1"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/q_lossy+ret_img+to_auto/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Daily-Dose-Newsletter_Cosmos_Embed_728x225.jpg" data-spai-egr="1" alt="Sign up to our weekly newsletter" width="600" height="154" title="microbe-wave: radiation-resistant microbes in microwaves 3"></noscript></p></a></div>  <img id="cosmos-post-tracker" width='1' height='1' style="opacity:0; height:1px!important; width:1px!important; border: 0!important; position: absolute!important; z-index: -1!important;" aria-label="Syndication Tracker" src="https://syndication.cosmosmagazine.com/?id=309048&title=Microbe-wave%3A+radiation-resistant+microbes+in+microwaves" loading="lazy">  <div class="share-syndicate-wrapper margin-top-1"> <div id="cosmos-link-back">  <p>Originally published by <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com" style="font-style:italic;">Cosmos</a> as <a title="Microbe-wave: radiation-resistant microbes in microwaves" href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/biology/radiation-microbes-microwave/" id="cosmos-post-url">Microbe-wave: radiation-resistant microbes in microwaves</a></p>  </div> <div class="article-sharing"> <ul class="cols"> <li> <a href="https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fcosmosmagazine.com%2Fscience%2Fbiology%2Fradiation-microbes-microwave%2F" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" title="Share on Facebook" onclick="window.open('https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fcosmosmagazine.com%2Fscience%2Fbiology%2Fradiation-microbes-microwave%2F'); return false;" class="primary-svg-fill-hover"> <svg width="30" height="30"> <g fill="none" fill-rule="evenodd"> <circle cx="15" cy="15" r="14" stroke="#FFF" stroke-width="2"/> <path fill="#FFF" fill-rule="nonzero" d="M18 12.55075h-2.565572V10.5195c0-.6230625.594107-.7675625.8713992-.7675625h1.657358V7.01075L16.063679 7c-2.5916132 0-3.1831276 2.0439375-3.1831276 3.3545v2.1963125H11V15.375h1.8805514V23h2.5538766v-7.625h2.1694815L18 12.55075z"/> </g> </svg> </a> </li> <li><a href="https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=https%3A%2F%2Fcosmosmagazine.com%2Fscience%2Fbiology%2Fradiation-microbes-microwave%2F&title=Microbe-wave:%20radiation-resistant%20microbes%20in%20microwaves&via=CosmosMagazine&hashtags=science" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" title="Tweet" onclick="window.open('https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=https%3A%2F%2Fcosmosmagazine.com%2Fscience%2Fbiology%2Fradiation-microbes-microwave%2F&title=Microbe-wave:%20radiation-resistant%20microbes%20in%20microwaves&via=CosmosMagazine&hashtags=science'); return false;" class="primary-svg-fill-hover"> <svg width="30" height="30" viewBox="0 0 30 30" fill="none" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"> <g fill="none" fill-rule="evenodd"> <circle cx="15" cy="15" r="14" fill="none" stroke="white" stroke-width="2" /> <path transform="matrix(0.011189,0,0,0.011189,8.28657,8)" d="M714.163 519.284L1160.89 0H1055.03L667.137 450.887L357.328 0H0L468.492 681.821L0 1226.37H105.866L515.491 750.218L842.672 1226.37H1200L714.137 519.284H714.163ZM569.165 687.828L521.697 619.934L144.011 79.6944H306.615L611.412 515.685L658.88 583.579L1055.08 1150.3H892.476L569.165 687.854V687.828Z" fill="white" /> </g> </svg> </a> </li> </ul> </div></div> </div> <div class="post-content-section"> </div> </div> </div> </div> </article> <aside class="col"> <div class="aside-content"> <div>  <div class="advert aside-ad ad-desktop auh-250"><div id="adn-00000000001fc2cc-i0p0" style="display: none"></div></div> </div> <div class="newsletter-sidebar margin-top-1"> <a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/OP59" class="newsletter-cta" data-device="desktop"> <img src="data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCAzMDAgMjUwIiB3aWR0aD0iMzAwIiBoZWlnaHQ9IjI1MCIgZGF0YS11PSIlMkZ3cC1jb250ZW50JTJGdXBsb2FkcyUyRjIwMjQlMkYwMyUyRldlZWtseS1DYXRjaHVwLTMwMHgyNTAtMS5wbmciIGRhdGEtdz0iMzAwIiBkYXRhLWg9IjI1MCIgZGF0YS1iaXA9IiI+PC9zdmc+" data-spai="1" alt="Newsletter"><noscript data-spai="1"><img src="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/q_lossy+ret_img+to_auto/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Weekly-Catchup-300x250-1.png" data-spai-egr="1" alt="Newsletter"></noscript> </a> </div> <div class="read-more-wrapper sidebar-wrapper margin-top-1 margin-bottom-1"> <div class="cols-1"> <h4 class="gradient-title margin-top-0 margin-bottom-1">You Might Like</h4> </div> <ul class="article-listing read-more-articles slider slide-last-20 cols-1 md-cols-1 rows-gap-1-dotted rows-list"> <li class="row read-more-articles__list"> <div class="article article-post"> <a class="thumbnail ar-16-9 md-ar-1-1" href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/biology/bacteria-breed-mosquitos/" aria-label="Article link"> <span data-spai-bg-on="1" class="image" style="background-image: url(data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCAxMjAwIDY3NSIgd2lkdGg9IjEyMDAiIGhlaWdodD0iNjc1IiBkYXRhLXU9Imh0dHBzJTNBJTJGJTJGY29zbW9zbWFnYXppbmUuY29tJTJGd3AtY29udGVudCUyRnVwbG9hZHMlMkYyMDI0JTJGMTElMkZHZXR0eUltYWdlcy0xMjA1NjUyMTIwXzEyMDAuanBnIiBkYXRhLXc9IjEyMDAiIGRhdGEtaD0iNjc1IiBkYXRhLWJpcD0iIj48L3N2Zz4=);background-position: 50% 50%" data-position-x="50" data-position-y="50" data-image-width="1200" data-image-height="675"> </span> </a> <div class="article-content padding-1"> <div class="cols-8"> <a class="primary-category cols-1 col-span-7 category science-color" href="/science/biology/"> Biology </a> <div class="favourite__wrapper row cols"> <button class="showDialog simplefavorite-button" aria-label="Favourite button"> </button> </div> </div> <a class="title" href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/biology/bacteria-breed-mosquitos/" aria-label="Article link"> <h2 class=" ">Bacteria could help breed more mosquitos to control disease</h2> </a> </div> </div> </li> <li class="row read-more-articles__list"> <div class="article article-post"> <a class="thumbnail ar-16-9 md-ar-1-1" href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/earth/climate/climate-change-is-wiping-out-rare-bacteria-in-antarctic-soil/" aria-label="Article link"> <span data-spai-bg-on="1" class="image" style="background-image: url(data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCAxMjAwIDY3NSIgd2lkdGg9IjEyMDAiIGhlaWdodD0iNjc1IiBkYXRhLXU9Imh0dHBzJTNBJTJGJTJGY29zbW9zbWFnYXppbmUuY29tJTJGd3AtY29udGVudCUyRnVwbG9hZHMlMkYyMDI0JTJGMDQlMkZ3YWxraW5nLXRvLWJyb3duaW5nLmNyb3BpbWcud2lkdGgxOTIwLmNyb3BiYXNpYy0xMjAwLTEuanBnIiBkYXRhLXc9IjEyMDAiIGRhdGEtaD0iNjc1IiBkYXRhLWJpcD0iIj48L3N2Zz4=);background-position: 50% 50%" data-position-x="50" data-position-y="50" data-image-width="1200" data-image-height="675"> </span> </a> <div class="article-content padding-1"> <div class="cols-8"> <a class="primary-category cols-1 col-span-7 category earth-color" href="/science/biology/"> Biology </a> <div class="favourite__wrapper row cols"> <button class="showDialog simplefavorite-button" aria-label="Favourite button"> </button> </div> </div> <a class="title" href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/earth/climate/climate-change-is-wiping-out-rare-bacteria-in-antarctic-soil/" aria-label="Article link"> <h2 class=" ">Climate change is wiping out rare bacteria in Antarctic soil</h2> </a> </div> </div> </li> <li class="row read-more-articles__list"> <div class="article article-post"> <a class="thumbnail ar-16-9 md-ar-1-1" href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/history/archaeology/irish-bronze-age-teeth/" aria-label="Article link"> <span data-spai-bg-on="1" class="image" style="background-image: url(data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCA1NDkgMzA5IiB3aWR0aD0iNTQ5IiBoZWlnaHQ9IjMwOSIgZGF0YS11PSJodHRwcyUzQSUyRiUyRmNvc21vc21hZ2F6aW5lLmNvbSUyRndwLWNvbnRlbnQlMkZ1cGxvYWRzJTJGMjAyNCUyRjAzJTJGQnJvbnplX0FnZV9odXRzX2F0X0NyYWdnYXVub3dlbl8tX2dlb2dyYXBoLm9yZ18udWtfLV8zMDAwMi5qcGciIGRhdGEtdz0iNTQ5IiBkYXRhLWg9IjMwOSIgZGF0YS1iaXA9IiI+PC9zdmc+);background-position: 29.69% 49.67%" data-position-x="29.69" data-position-y="49.67" data-image-width="549" data-image-height="309"> </span> </a> <div class="article-content padding-1"> <div class="cols-8"> <a class="primary-category cols-1 col-span-7 category history-color" href="/science/biology/"> Biology </a> <div class="favourite__wrapper row cols"> <button class="showDialog simplefavorite-button" aria-label="Favourite button"> </button> </div> </div> <a class="title" href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/history/archaeology/irish-bronze-age-teeth/" aria-label="Article link"> <h2 class=" ">Irish Bronze Age teeth reveal human diet evolution</h2> </a> </div> </div> </li> <li class="row read-more-articles__list"> <div class="article article-post"> <a class="thumbnail ar-16-9 md-ar-1-1" href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/health/semen-infertility-microbiome/" aria-label="Article link"> <span data-spai-bg-on="1" class="image" style="background-image: url(data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCAxMjAwIDY3NSIgd2lkdGg9IjEyMDAiIGhlaWdodD0iNjc1IiBkYXRhLXU9Imh0dHBzJTNBJTJGJTJGY29zbW9zbWFnYXppbmUuY29tJTJGd3AtY29udGVudCUyRnVwbG9hZHMlMkYyMDI0JTJGMDElMkZHZXR0eUltYWdlcy0xMTY0NTEzNjYyLmpwZyIgZGF0YS13PSIxMjAwIiBkYXRhLWg9IjY3NSIgZGF0YS1iaXA9IiI+PC9zdmc+);background-position: 50% 50%" data-position-x="50" data-position-y="50" data-image-width="1200" data-image-height="675"> </span> </a> <div class="article-content padding-1"> <div class="cols-8"> <a class="primary-category cols-1 col-span-7 category health-color" href="/science/biology/"> Biology </a> <div class="favourite__wrapper row cols"> <button class="showDialog simplefavorite-button" aria-label="Favourite button"> </button> </div> </div> <a class="title" href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/health/semen-infertility-microbiome/" aria-label="Article link"> <h2 class=" ">Semen microbiome linked to human infertility</h2> </a> </div> </div> </li> </ul> </div> </div> </aside> </section>  <div class="advert ad-bottom-sticky-mobile ad-mobile auh-50"><div id="adn-00000000001fc737-i0p0" style="display: none"></div></div> <div class="advert ad-post-bottom padding-bottom-4 ad-desktop auh-90"><div id="adn-000000000023d099-i0p0" style="display: none"></div></div>  <div class="advert ad-post-bottom padding-bottom-4 ad-mobile auh-250"><div id="adn-000000000023d09a-i0p0" style="display: none"></div></div> <div class="single-post-loadmore-wrap entry-content"> <div id="single-post-load-more-content" class="single-post-loadmore"> </div> <div class="load-more-trigger"> <div id="single-post-load-more-btn" data-page="0" data-single-post-id="309048" class="button-tertiary" data-max-pages="5"> <span id="single-loading-text" class="mt-1 hidden text-sm">Loading next article...</span> </div> </div> </div> </main> </div> <dialog class="favourite__dialog" id="favouriteDialog"> <div class="favourite__dialog__body"> <p>Please login to favourite this article.</p> </div> <div class="favourite__dialog__footer"> <button class="button closeDialog">Close</button> <button class="button loginUrl">Login</button> </div> </dialog><footer class="footer"> <div class="inner-container"> <div class="footer-branding cols-1"> <a class="brand" href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/"> <img src="data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCA4MzkgMTUxIiB3aWR0aD0iODM5IiBoZWlnaHQ9IjE1MSIgZGF0YS11PSIlMkZ3cC1jb250ZW50JTJGdXBsb2FkcyUyRjIwMjQlMkYwMyUyRkNvc21vc19sb2dvX3doaXRlLnN2ZyIgZGF0YS13PSI4MzkiIGRhdGEtaD0iMTUxIiBkYXRhLWJpcD0iIj48L3N2Zz4=" data-spai="1" alt="Cosmos" width="300"><noscript data-spai="1"><img src="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/ret_img/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Cosmos_logo_white.svg" data-spai-egr="1" alt="Cosmos" width="300"></noscript> </a> </div> <div class="content cols-4 md-cols-2 sm-cols-1"> <div class="item menu"> <ul id="menu-footer-menu" class="nav"><li id="menu-item-313731" class="menu-item menu-subscribe-now"><a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/subscribe-now/">Subscribe Now</a></li> <li id="menu-item-1345" class="menu-item menu-about-us"><a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/about-us/">About Us</a></li> <li id="menu-item-1346" class="menu-item menu-faq"><a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/faq/">FAQ</a></li> <li id="menu-item-1357" class="menu-item menu-terms-of-use"><a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/terms/">Terms of use</a></li> <li id="menu-item-257148" class="menu-item menu-schools"><a href="https://education.cosmosmagazine.com">Schools</a></li> <li id="menu-item-100218" class="menu-item menu-contact-us"><a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/contact-us/">Contact us</a></li> <li id="menu-item-239226" class="menu-item menu-privacy-policy"><a rel="privacy-policy" href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/privacy/">Privacy Policy</a></li> </ul> </div> <div class="item about"> <p class="about">'Cosmos' and 'The Science of Everything' are registered trademarks in Australia and owned by CSIRO. </p> </div> <div class="item contact"> <p>T: 1300 719623 (Australia)<br /> E: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#d7beb9b1b897b4b8a4bab8a4f9b4a4bea5b8f9b6a2"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="7a13141c153a191509171509541909130815541b0f">[email protected]</span></a></p> <p>Address:</p> <p>Cosmos,</p> <p>CSIRO Publishing,</p> <p>PO Box 10041,</p> <p>Adelaide SA 5001</p> <p>Australia</p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> </div> <div class="item newsletter"> <a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/OP59" class="newsletter-cta" data-device="desktop"> <img src="data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCAzMDAgMjUwIiB3aWR0aD0iMzAwIiBoZWlnaHQ9IjI1MCIgZGF0YS11PSIlMkZ3cC1jb250ZW50JTJGdXBsb2FkcyUyRjIwMjQlMkYwMyUyRldlZWtseS1DYXRjaHVwLTMwMHgyNTAtMS5wbmciIGRhdGEtdz0iMzAwIiBkYXRhLWg9IjI1MCIgZGF0YS1iaXA9IiI+PC9zdmc+" data-spai="1" alt="Newsletter"><noscript data-spai="1"><img src="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/q_lossy+ret_img+to_auto/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Weekly-Catchup-300x250-1.png" data-spai-egr="1" alt="Newsletter"></noscript> </a><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/OP59" class="newsletter-cta" data-device="mobile"> <img src="data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCAzMDAgMjUwIiB3aWR0aD0iMzAwIiBoZWlnaHQ9IjI1MCIgZGF0YS11PSIlMkZ3cC1jb250ZW50JTJGdXBsb2FkcyUyRjIwMjQlMkYwMyUyRldlZWtseS1DYXRjaHVwLTMwMHgyNTAtMS5wbmciIGRhdGEtdz0iMzAwIiBkYXRhLWg9IjI1MCIgZGF0YS1iaXA9IiI+PC9zdmc+" data-spai="1" alt="Newsletter"><noscript data-spai="1"><img src="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/q_lossy+ret_img+to_auto/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Weekly-Catchup-300x250-1.png" data-spai-egr="1" alt="Newsletter"></noscript> </a> <ul class="social"> <li><a href="https://www.facebook.com/CosmosMagazine/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener" class="primary-svg-fill-hover" aria-label="Cosmos Facebook"><svg width="30" height="30"> <g fill="none" fill-rule="evenodd"> <circle cx="15" cy="15" r="14" stroke="#FFF" stroke-width="2"/> <path fill="#FFF" fill-rule="nonzero" d="M18 12.55075h-2.565572V10.5195c0-.6230625.594107-.7675625.8713992-.7675625h1.657358V7.01075L16.063679 7c-2.5916132 0-3.1831276 2.0439375-3.1831276 3.3545v2.1963125H11V15.375h1.8805514V23h2.5538766v-7.625h2.1694815L18 12.55075z"/> </g> </svg> </a></li> <li><a href="https://www.instagram.com/cosmosmagazine/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener" class="primary-svg-fill-hover" aria-label="Cosmos Instagram"><svg width="30" height="30"> <g fill="none" fill-rule="evenodd"> <circle cx="15" cy="15" r="14" stroke="#FFF" stroke-width="2"/> <path fill="#FFF" d="M20.6086957 19.533913c0 .5930435-.4817392 1.0730435-1.0730435 1.0730435H10.466087c-.59304352 0-1.07478265-.48-1.07478265-1.0730435V15H11.133913c0 .0034783-.0017391.0052174-.0017391.0086957 0 2.133913 1.7356522 3.8695652 3.8678261 3.8695652 2.133913 0 3.8695652-1.7356522 3.8695652-3.8695652 0-.0034783-.0017391-.0052174-.0017391-.0086957h1.7408696v4.533913zM15 12.44c1.4191304 0 2.5704348 1.1495652 2.5704348 2.5686957 0 1.4191304-1.1513044 2.5704347-2.5704348 2.5704347-1.4191304 0-2.5686957-1.1513043-2.5686957-2.5704347C12.4313043 13.5895652 13.5808696 12.44 15 12.44zm2.573913-.0852174h2.0139131v-2.013913H17.573913v2.013913zM19.5356522 8H10.466087C9.10956522 8 8 9.10956522 8 10.4643478v9.0695652C8 20.8904348 9.10956522 22 10.466087 22h9.0695652C20.8904348 22 22 20.8904348 22 19.533913v-9.0695652C22 9.10956522 20.8904348 8 19.5356522 8z"/> </g> </svg> </a></li> <li><a href="https://twitter.com/CosmosMagazine" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener" class="primary-svg-fill-hover" aria-label="Cosmos Twitter"><svg width="30" height="30" viewBox="0 0 30 30" fill="none" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"> <g fill="none" fill-rule="evenodd"> <circle cx="15" cy="15" r="14" fill="none" stroke="white" stroke-width="2" /> <path transform="matrix(0.011189,0,0,0.011189,8.28657,8)" d="M714.163 519.284L1160.89 0H1055.03L667.137 450.887L357.328 0H0L468.492 681.821L0 1226.37H105.866L515.491 750.218L842.672 1226.37H1200L714.137 519.284H714.163ZM569.165 687.828L521.697 619.934L144.011 79.6944H306.615L611.412 515.685L658.88 583.579L1055.08 1150.3H892.476L569.165 687.854V687.828Z" fill="white" /> </g> </svg> </a></li> <li><a href="https://flipboard.com/@CosmosMagazine" target="_blank" class="primary-svg-fill-hover" aria-label="Cosmos Flipboard"><svg width="30" height="30"> <g > <circle cx="15" cy="15" r="14" stroke="#FFF" style="fill:none;stroke-width:2px;"/> <path fill="#FFF" transform="matrix(0.0466667,0,0,0.0466667,3.33333,3.33333)" d="M400,200L300,200L300,300L200,300L200,400L100,400L100,100L400,100L400,200Z"/> </g> </svg> </a></li> <li><a href="https://www.buzzsprout.com/1667224" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener" class="primary-svg-fill-hover" aria-label="Cosmos Buzzsprout"><svg width="30" height="30"> <g> <circle cx="15" cy="15" r="14" stroke="#FFF" style="fill:none;stroke-width:2px;"/> <path fill="#FFF" d="M17.354,12.171L18.656,12.171L18.656,13.243C18.653,14.978 17.384,16.416 15.711,16.751L15.711,21.722L14.314,21.722L14.314,16.766C12.599,16.463 11.287,15.007 11.285,13.243L11.285,12.171L12.524,12.171L12.524,11.433L17.354,11.433L17.354,12.171ZM9.497,20.189C11.167,21.86 14.058,21.679 14.058,21.679C14.058,21.679 14.238,18.79 12.567,17.119C10.896,15.448 8.006,15.628 8.006,15.628C8.006,15.628 7.826,18.518 9.497,20.189ZM20.503,20.189C18.832,21.86 15.942,21.679 15.942,21.679C15.942,21.679 15.762,18.79 17.433,17.119C19.104,15.448 21.994,15.628 21.994,15.628C21.994,15.628 22.174,18.518 20.503,20.189ZM12.524,12.854L11.97,12.854L11.97,13.243C11.972,14.614 12.97,15.779 14.314,16.07L14.314,15.349C13.283,15.085 12.524,14.182 12.524,13.109L12.524,12.854ZM17.354,12.854L17.354,13.109C17.354,14.13 16.666,14.997 15.711,15.307L15.711,16.051C17.012,15.73 17.969,14.585 17.971,13.243L17.971,12.854L17.354,12.854ZM17.355,10.319C17.355,9.039 16.273,8 14.939,8C13.606,8 12.524,9.039 12.524,10.319C12.524,11.435 12.524,10.935 12.524,11.157L17.355,11.157L17.355,10.319Z" style="fill-rule:nonzero;"/> </g> </svg> </a></li> <li><a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/feed" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener" class="primary-svg-fill-hover" aria-label="Cosmos RSS feed"><svg width="30" height="30"> <defs/> <path fill="#FFF" fill-rule="nonzero" d="M15.0643691 0c8.2842713 0 15 6.71572875 15 15 0 8.2842712-6.7157287 15-15 15C6.7800979 30 .06436914 23.2842712.06436914 15c0-8.28427125 6.71572876-15 14.99999996-15zm0 2C7.8846674 2 2.06436914 7.82029825 2.06436914 15c0 7.1797017 5.82029826 13 12.99999996 13 7.1797018 0 13-5.8202983 13-13 0-7.17970175-5.8202982-13-13-13zM9.61448773 17.7505929c1.13224927 0 2.05011857.9178694 2.05011857 2.0501186s-.9178693 2.0501186-2.05011857 2.0501186c-1.13224923 0-2.05011859-.9178694-2.05011859-2.0501186s.91786936-2.0501186 2.05011859-2.0501186zm-2.05011859-5.4666412c5.18400766 0 9.41858876 4.1452018 9.56306776 9.2949295l.0038106.2719489h-2.7328081c0-3.6896155-2.939535-6.7050347-6.59949854-6.8290758l-.23457172-.0039695v-2.7338331zm0-4.7839517c7.80933326 0 14.18116996 6.2690823 14.34749786 14.0392347l.0033322.3115954h-2.732808c0-6.3080572-5.0522841-11.4563946-11.32319518-11.6133119l-.29482688-.0036851V7.5z"/> </svg></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </footer> <script data-cfasync="false" src="/cdn-cgi/scripts/5c5dd728/cloudflare-static/email-decode.min.js"></script><script> const paywallButton = document.querySelector('.wp-block-button__link'); function paywall_click_datalayer() { dataLayer.push({ 'event': 'paywall_click', 'paywall_name': '', 'page_location': 'https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/biology/radiation-microbes-microwave/' }); } if (paywallButton) { paywallButton.addEventListener('click', function() { paywall_click_datalayer(); }); } </script> <script> let previousMobileDevice = isMobileDevice(); // Request ads on page resize window.addEventListener('resize', function() { clearTimeout(window.resizedFinished); window.resizedFinished = setTimeout(function() { if (previousMobileDevice === isMobileDevice()) { return; } adUnitsServed = []; previousMobileDevice = isMobileDevice(); adUnitsServed = requestThirdPartyAds(adUnits, adUnitsServed); }, 1000); }); /** Handle loadmore article */ const handleLoadmore = (mutationsList) => { for (let mutation of mutationsList) { if (mutation.type === 'childList') { for (let addedNode of mutation.addedNodes) { if (addedNode.nodeType === Node.ELEMENT_NODE && addedNode.matches('section.article-container')) { // Fixed the selector here clearTimeout(window.domHeightChangeFinished); window.domHeightChangeFinished = setTimeout(() => { // console.log('The specific <section> was added!'); adUnitsServed = requestThirdPartyAds(adUnits, adUnitsServed); }, 250); } } } } }; const loadmoreNode = document.getElementById('single-post-load-more-content'); if (loadmoreNode) { const observer = new MutationObserver(handleLoadmore); observer.observe(loadmoreNode, { childList: true, subtree: false // This is set false because we only want to observe direct children of the target node }); } /** END: Handle loadmore article */ // Prevents the page from jumping when the ad loads adUnitsServed.forEach(function(adUnit) { let adUnitDiv = document.getElementById(adUnit.targetId); let adUnitDivParentClass = adUnitDiv.parentNode.className; if (!adUnitDiv || adUnitDivParentClassArray.includes(adUnitDivParentClass)) { return; } adUnitDivParentClassArray.push(adUnitDivParentClass); let adUnitDivStyle = window.getComputedStyle(adUnitDiv); let adUnitDivHeight = parseInt(adUnit.auH) + parseInt(adUnitDivStyle.marginTop) + parseInt(adUnitDivStyle.marginBottom) + parseInt(adUnitDivStyle.paddingTop) + parseInt(adUnitDivStyle.paddingBottom); let style = document.createElement('style'); style.type = 'text/css'; style.innerHTML = '.' + adUnitDivParentClass.replace(/ /g, '.') + ' { min-height: ' + adUnitDivHeight + 'px; }'; document.getElementsByTagName('head')[0].appendChild(style); }); </script> <script type="text/javascript"> (function () { var c = document.body.className; c = c.replace(/woocommerce-no-js/, 'woocommerce-js'); document.body.className = c; })(); </script> <script type='text/javascript' id='metorik-js-js-extra'> /* <![CDATA[ */ var metorik_params = {"lifetime":"6","session":"30","ajaxurl":"https:\/\/cosmosmagazine.com\/wp-admin\/admin-ajax.php","cart_tracking":"1","cart_items":"0","cart_checkout_button":"1","add_cart_popup_placement":"bottom","send_cart_events":"added_to_cart removed_from_cart updated_cart_totals updated_shipping_method applied_coupon removed_coupon updated_checkout","sbjs_domain":"","send_cart_fragments":"1"}; /* ]]> */ </script> <script defer src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/cache/minify/ddaa7.js?x75256"></script> <script type='text/javascript' id='sage/main.js-js-extra'> /* <![CDATA[ */ var mainScript = {"ajaxUrl":"https:\/\/cosmosmagazine.com\/wp-admin\/admin-ajax.php","ajax_nonce":"d4ef00f5cd","is_user_logged_in":""}; /* ]]> */ </script> <script src="/wp-content/themes/cosmos/dist/scripts/main.js?x75256&v=2bb182da"></script><script type='text/javascript' id='loadmore-js-extra'> /* <![CDATA[ */ var siteConfig = {"ajaxUrl":"https:\/\/cosmosmagazine.com\/wp-admin\/admin-ajax.php","ajax_nonce":"78cd353247"}; /* ]]> */ </script> <script defer src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/cache/minify/fef85.js?x75256"></script> <script src="https://cdn.onesignal.com/sdks/OneSignalSDK.js?ver=6.3.5" async="async"></script> </div> </body> </html>

CINXE.COM

Microbe-wave: radiation-resistant microbes in microwaves