Russia to launch 75 mice, 1,000 fruit flies on Aug. 20 to study spaceflight effects

Russia is preparing to loft a "miniature mouse hotel" into space.

The Bion-M No. 2 biosatellite is being readied for its planned Aug. 20 launch atop a Soyuz-2.1b rocket from Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Onboard are 75 mice and other specimens to be exposed to 30 days of radiation before a parachute-aided return to Russia.

Bion-M No. 2 is being dubbed a "Noah's Ark," because it's loaded with the mice, more than 1,000 fruit flies, cell cultures, microorganisms and plant seeds.

Moon simulants, too

Also onboard is a payload tied to future exploration of the moon.

The Vernadsky Institute of Geochemistry and Analytical Chemistry teamed with the Institute of Medical and Biological Problems (IMBP) to produce a container holding 16 test tubes. The vials hold lunar simulants – dust and ro