A Russian Space capsule carrying lizards, mice, gerbils, small crayfish, fish, newts, snails, some plants and micro flora returned to Earth after a month-long expedition into space.
A Russian Space expedition came to an end after the space capsule carrying animals landed safely in the Orenburg Region, about 745 miles southeast of Moscow, Sunday May 19, after spending 30-days in space. But not all the animals that took off from Earth, April 19, survived the space journey.
The Bion-M1 capsule took off from Kazakhstan attached to a Soyuz 2-1A rocket. More than half of 45 mice, eight Mongolian gerbils along with many other animals on board died during the space journey due to "equipment failure," said Vladimir Sychov, deputy director of the Institute of Medical and Biological Problems, Moscow. But all 15 geckos survived the mission.
A similar Russian space journey with animals aboard was conducted in 2007, which lasted only 12 days. But the Bion-M1 mission was the longest space expedition of this kind and lasted a month. The space capsule orbited 357 miles above Earth.
The purpose of the mission was to test the safety of sending humans into orbit by understanding the effects of weightlessness and other factors on space flight on animals' cell structures.
According to an AFP report, the surviving mice can provide sufficient data to analyze the effects of weightlessness on cell structure of these animals and help in evaluating the risks involved in space travel for humans. Previous studies have shown adverse health effects on humans traveling into the space. According to a study performed by a team of radiologists at the University of Texas Medical School at Houston, 7 out of 27 astronauts showed flattening of the backs of their eyes. Almost all astronauts had enlarged optic nerves. These symptoms can result in permanent loss of eye sight.
"These scientific findings will help us better understand the mechanisms of life's response to gravity, shedding light on Earth-bound medical issues and also the development of countermeasures for human space travelers through the use of model biological systems," said Nicole Rayl of NASA, who also participated in the Russian missions.
This new research will help shed more light on the future of manned mission to Mars. The results of the tests on the surviving animals will help in working things around to reduce the effects of space travel on humans.
