BAIKONUR COSMODROME /Kazakhstan/, August 19. /TASS/. The Soyuz-2.1b launch vehicle, carrying the Bion-M No. 2 biological satellite, has been positioned on the launch pad ahead of its scheduled launch on Wednesday, reports a TASS correspondent.

All service arms are in place and specialists are now preparing to proceed according to the planned schedule for the first launch day. The launch is set for late Wednesday evening, during which a diverse array of biological specimens will be sent into space. This includes 75 mice, approximately 1,500 fruit flies, as well as plants, mushrooms, lichens, and cell cultures.

The spacecraft, weighing 6.4 tons, is intended to reach a sun-synchronous orbit with an inclination of 96.6 degrees. Notably, this orbit exposes the satellite to cosmic radiation levels roughly one-third higher than those encountered in the current International Space Station environment. This mission aims to assess the safety of such conditions for future manned flights.

Bion is a series of domestically developed spacecraft dedicated to biological research. These missions provide crucial insights into the effects of space radiation and weightlessness on living organisms. The first spacecraft in this series, Cosmos-605, was launched in 1973. The modernized Bion-M series began with a satellite launched in 2013, which carried mice, Mongolian gerbils, geckos, snails, plants, and colonies of various microorganisms into space, continuing the tradition of biological experimentation in orbit.