BION
Development of the Bion satellite began in 1970 at the Kuybyshev Branch of the OKB-1 (now the GNPRKTs TsSKB-Progress) for conducting biomedical experiments in Earth orbit. The subcontractor for the main payload was the Moscow-based Institute of Biomedical Problems (IMBP). The spacecraft design was based on the Zenit-2M/Gektor photo-reconnaissance satellite bus.
The nominal orbit of operation for Bion was 226 X 288 km at 82.3° and lifetime was <30 days. Mass was <5400 kg of which 625 kg was actual scientific instrumentation.
Of the ten Bion missions launched to date, the last eight (beginning with Kosmos-782) have involved cooperative international ventures with the United States. U.S. scientists have used nearly 50 biological specimens in the program, ranging from viruses to mamals, and including monkeys, rabbits, guinea pigs, rats, mice, tortoises, higher plants, fish, birds, and insects. Apart from the U.S., nine other countries have also participated. The European Space Agency (ESA) cooperated for the first time with Kosmos-1887.
Kosmos-1129 was the first attempt to breed rats in space.
Kosmos-1514 carried two monkeys, Abrek and Bion. It was the first time that the USSR flew monkeys in space.
Kosmos-1667 carried two monkeys, Verny and Gordy.
Kosmos-1887 carried two monkeys, Yerosha and Dryoma.
Kosmos-2044 carried two monkeys, Zhakonya and Zabikaya. Special note to Dwayne Day: the backup monkey was Zemlyanin. Apparently the prime monkeys were originally the backup crew.
Kosmos-2229 carried two Rhesus monkeys, Krosh and Ivasha.
Bion-11 carried two Macaque monkeys, Lapik and Multik. The latter died the day after landing in an episode unrelated to the monkey’s experience in space.
The Chief of the Kuybyshev Branch of the
OKB-1 since 1959 has been D. I. Kozlov (from 1983, the General Designer).
LAUNCH HISTORY
| Public Name | Industrial Index | OKB Name | Serial No. | Launch Time (Moscow Time) | Launch Date | Launch Vehicle | LV Serial No. | Launch Site | Length of Mission (Days) |
| Kosmos-605 | 12KS | 1 | 2125 | Oct 31 1973 | 11A511U | P-43/3 | 21.5 | ||
| Kosmos-690 | 12KS | 2 | 2100 | Oct 22 1974 | 11A511U | P-43/3 | 20.5 | ||
| Kosmos-782 | 12KS | 3 | 2000 | Nov 25 1975 | 11A511U | P-43/3 | 19.5 | ||
| Kosmos-936 | 12KS | 4 | 1700 | Aug 3 1977 | 11A511U | P-43/3 | 18.6 | ||
| Kosmos-1129 | 12KS | 5 | 1830 | Sep 25 1979 | 11A511U | P-41/1 | 18.5 | ||
| Kosmos-1514 | 12KS | 6 | 1000 | Dec 14 1983 | 11A511U | P-41/1 | 5 | ||
| Kosmos-1667 | 12KS | 7 | 0615 | Jul 10 1985 | 11A511U | P-41/1 | 6.9 | ||
| Kosmos-1887 | 12KS | 8 | 1550 | Sep 29 1987 | 11A511U | P-41/1 | 13 | ||
| Kosmos-2044 | 12KS | 9 | 0930 | Sep 15 1989 | 11A511U | P-41/1 | 14 | ||
| Kosmos-2229 | 12KS | 10 | 1630 | Dec 29 1982 | 11A511U | P-43/3 | 12 | ||
| Bion No. 11 | 12KS | 11 | 1650:00 | Dec 24 1996 | 11A511U | PVB 15000-050 | P-43/4 | 15 |
SELECTED SOURCES
[1]. Phillip Clark, Jane's Space Directory, 13th ed., 1997-98 (Coulsdon, UK: Jane's Information Group, 1997), pp. 119-120.
[2]. B. Harvey, "Biosputniks: The Use by the Soviet Union and Russia of Dogs, Monkeys and Other Animals in the Exploration of Space, 1949-93," Journal of the British Interplanetary Society 46 (October 1993): 381-384.
[3]. D. I. Kozlov, ed., Konstruirovaniye avtomaticheskikh kosmicheskikh apparatov (Moscow: Mashinostroyeniye, 1996), pp. 26-27.
[4]. K. Vernyakov, "Special Preparation and Launch of the 'Bion' KA" (in Russian), Novosti kosmonavtiki 26 (December 16-31, 1996): 34-38.
