Our Tardigrade Mascot
Small, resilient, and remarkably difficult to kill, the tardigrade is a fitting mascot for an organization dedicated to scientific curiosity and exploration.
Tardigrades, also called water bears and moss piglets, are among the most resilient animals known on Earth. Individual species are able to survive extreme conditions that would quickly kill most other forms of life—including extreme temperatures and pressures, air deprivation, radiation, dehydration, and starvation. Some species have even survived exposure to outer space.
It is no wonder that the tardigrade was chosen to play a memorable role in Star Trek: Discovery, where a giant tardigrade’s unusual abilities became integral to the experimental spore drive.
What’s in a Name?
Why Stamets?
Discovery‘s Science Officer, Paul Stamets, is named after the real-world mycologist Paul Stamets, who is known for his work studying fungi and mycelial networks.
While the spore drive and its universal mycelial network belong firmly to the world of Star Trek, the tardigrade itself is very real—and its extraordinary resilience makes it an appropriate representative for STARFLEET Sciences.
In honor of both the real-world scientist and Discovery‘s Science Officer, our tardigrade mascot bears the name Stamets.
Resilience. Exploration. Discovery.
From surviving some of Earth’s harshest environments to inspiring science fiction, the tardigrade embodies the curiosity, adaptability, and spirit of discovery at the heart of STARFLEET Sciences.