Biologists reluctant to continue gecko experiments till space hardware is reliable
MOSCOW. Sept 2 (Interfax-AVN) - There will be no more experiments with geckos in outer space because technical flaws endanger the geckos' lives, gecko experiment supervisor, researcher from the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences' Human Morphology Institute Sergei Savelyev told Interfax-AVN.
"What was the cause of their death? We are still trying to find that out because the material was supplied just last night. But it seems to be a technical error in the life-sustenance equipment. Judging by what the animals look like, it was some technical mistake, some glitch but we do not know exactly what it was. We can tell by the geckos' condition, the paradoxical causes of their death that it was a technical error which occurred at least several days ago. I suspect the real cause will never been disclosed," he said.
Most probably, the geckos died from a sharp change of pressure or temperature but, anyway, it was some technical failure of the life-sustenance system, Savelyev said.
He said he "ran a full cycle of Soviet-style tests" in the two previous gecko missions so that the geckos could survive the possible technical failures of spacecraft.
"I very much hope I will no longer be a part of this because space projects fail for technical reasons. I may reconsider when they learn how to build [space hardware]," Savelyev said.
The Foton-M4 research spacecraft landed in the Orenburg region at 1:18 p.m. Moscow time on September 1. It was said after the landing that the five geckos (four females and a male) had died. Reportedly, they died of hypothermia.
The transmission of Foton-M4 telemetry was disrupted about a week ago, and the Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos) ordered an emergency landing of the spacecraft.
