[4] The ability of Chroococcidiopsis to resist desiccation in arid environments is due in part because it colonizes the underside of translucent rocks.

[citation needed] A 2023 study found Chroococcidiopsis is able to survive for long periods in a desiccated state on solar panels, under irradiated conditions.

[6][7] On a shorter time scale, cyanobacteria such as Chroococcidiopsis could be used in closed systems to produce resources for human-occupied outposts on Mars without altering the planet's surface or atmosphere.

[10] The experiment included samples of Chroococcidiopsis that were exposed to simulated Martian atmosphere, UVC radiation and temperature extremes.

When these biofilms were rewetted the nucleotide excision repair genes encoding UvrA, UvrB and UvrC were over-expressed.