The Russian biosatellite Bion-M2 with mice on board will be boosted into orbit in 2019, where it will operate for 60 days, the head of the Bion project Vladimir Sychev said.

"The height of the previous flight of the Bion-M1 biosatellite was mere 545 kilometers. Our new device will fly twice as high. This will provide unique data concerning the impact of the solar radiation has on biological objects, so that later we could better prepare for a manned flight into the deep space, including the mission to Mars," Doctor of Biological Sciences Sychev explained. The realistic launch date of Bion-M2 is 2019, the scientist noted.

The previous Russian biosatellite Bion-M1 took a monthly spaceflight in spring 2013, with a series of experiments conducted on board. The satellite contained about a hundred different living organisms, in particular, Mongolian gerbils, mice, geckos, fish, freshwater crustaceans, algae, as well as genetically pure mice.

As it turned out, most of the passengers of the satellite mission died because of the equipment failures - all eight Mongolian gerbils, 29 mice out of 45, and cichlids fish. Geckos and snails were among the survivors.

Nevertheless, Bion-M1 fully complied with its research program, according to the IBMP representatives, as it was expected that up to half of the animals would come back alive.

The research still provided valuable data for the scientists, as it had given them for the first time the information, describing the impact of zero gravity on blood vessels in the brain, on the spinal cord and inner ear, as well as on gene expression, reported RIA NOVOSTI.

Source: Voice of Russia