Bion / Biocosmos
past Mission
Type
Orbiter
Launch
Oct. 31, 1973
Location
Earth Orbit
Objective
Biomedical research on animals and plants in microgravity
Bion/Biocosmos was a series of Russian biomedical research satellites with experiments from multiple nations, including the United States. The first launch was in 1973. Over the years, the spacecraft have carried experiments on the effects of weightlessness and radiation on various animals and plants, as well as research in areas including reproduction, regeneration, and immunology. The experimental subjects ranged from monkeys to fruit flies, spores, fungi, seeds, and plants. After Bion 11 in 1996, the program re-emerged in 2013 as Bion M1, carrying experiments from the U.S., Germany, Canada, the Netherlands, and Poland, among others. Bion M2 was scheduled to launch in 2022, but was postponed.
