KOROLEV, Moscow region. Sept 14 (Interfax-AVN) - Foton-M No.3 satellite with mice, lizards, a butterfly, roaches and other living creatures aboard, has been placed in Earth's orbit.
"Right after splitting from the third stage of the Soyuz-U launch vehicle, the satellite was taken under control by the Mission Control Center," Valery Lyndin, the Mission Control's spokesman, told Interfax-AVN.
He said that 40 officers will control the satellite in flight 24/7 to monitor the parameters of the equipment on it.
"The satellite was launched from Baikonur with the help of Soyuz-U vehicle, used to launch manned Soyuz TMA spacecraft, Progress cargo spaceships and other spacecraft weighing up to 7,200 kg. Foton-M weighs 6,500 kilos," he said, noting that 26 experiments, including 10 as part of the Russian space program, will be carried out during the Foton's flight.
The experimental data will be transmitted to destinations in Russia and the European Space Agency's receiver in Sweden using the Telesupport equipment.
Foton-M is the successor of the Foton satellite, 12 of which have been launched since 1985. The new version was launched from Baikonur on May 31, 2005 for the first time, taking lobsters, lizards and tritons to space.