Imagine seeing Christopher Columbus crossing the Atlantic Ocean on the Santa Maria in 1492 or the Concorde flying to New York at the speed of sound and still actively participating in today's life. The average lifespan of a Greenland shark is up to 600 years. That's over 500 more years than a human life span and almost 480 more years than the world’s oldest person, Emma Morano, who died at 117. These Methuselahs live in the deep sea. They don't have much sunlight and they don't need to eat as often as other sharks.
Greenland sharks are some of the most well-adapted animals on Earth. They have an incredible ability to survive in the deep sea, even during periods when oxygen levels are low or there is no light at all. They can move through life without eating for months, and their DNA doesn't show any signs of mutation. Like all sharks, Greenland Sharks don´t suffer from cancer. These survivalists can live in one of the harshest environments on Earth - the deep ocean - this makes it possible for them to be a model organism for space exploration research projects.
