Launch of Russia’s Bion-M No.2 biosatellite scheduled for August 20
MOSCOW, August 5. /TASS/. The Bion-M No.2 biosatellite is scheduled to be launched into the orbit on August 20 from the Baikonur spaceport in Kazakhstan, a source at the Institute for Biomedical Problems of the Russian Academy of Sciences has told TASS.
"The launch of the second Bion-M satellite from the Baikonur spaceport has been scheduled for August 20," the source stated.
The spacecraft carries 75 mice and 1,500 drosophila flies, as well as plants and microorganisms.
The Bion is a series of domestic satellites focused on biological research. In particular, scientists want to study the impact of cosmic radiation and zero gravity on living organisms. Mice are the main object of research under Bion-M projects.
Bion biosatellite is also intended for delivering flies, plants and microorganisms into orbit. The first similar spacecraft named Cosmos-605 was launched in 1973. In 2013, the first spacecraft of the Bion-M series was put into orbit. It delivered mice, Mongolian gerbils, geckos and various colonies of microorganisms into outer space.
