Biosatellite 3
Biosatellite 3, also known as abbreviated Biosat 3 and as Biosatellite D,[5] was a third and last artificial satellite unmanned U.S. belonging to Biosatellite program for biological research.
 Biosatellite 3 satellite. | |
| Mission type | Bioscience |
|---|---|
| Operator | NASA / ARC |
| COSPAR ID | 1969-056A |
| SATCAT no. | 4000[1] |
| Mission duration | 8.8 days |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Manufacturer | General Electric[2] |
| Launch mass | 1,546 kilograms (3,408 lb) |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | 29 June 1969, 03:15:59 UTC[3] |
| Rocket | Delta N 539/D70 |
| Launch site | Cape Canaveral LC-17A |
| End of mission | |
| Landing date | 7 July 1969 |
| Landing site | Oahu, Hawaii, USA |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Geocentric |
| Regime | Low Earth |
| Eccentricity | 0.00144[4] |
| Perigee altitude | 221 kilometers (137 mi)[4] |
| Apogee altitude | 240 kilometers (150 mi)[4] |
| Inclination | 33.5º[4] |
| Period | 92 minutes[4] |
The intent had been to fly a 6 kg male Southern pig-tailed macaque (Macaca nemestrina) named "Bonny" in Earth-orbit for 30 days. However, after only 8.8 days in orbit, the mission was terminated because of the subject's deteriorating health. High development costs were a strong incentive for maximising the scientific return from the mission. Because of this, the scientific goals had become exceedingly ambitious over time, and a great many measurements were conducted on the single research subject flown. Although the mission was highly successful from a technical standpoint, the science results were apparently compromised.[6] Bonny, dubbed an "astromonk" by the American press (as opposed to the chimpanzees from earlier American missions who were nicknamed "chimponauts") died on 8 July, one day after the biological capsule's successful recovery from the Pacific.[7]
Despite the seeming failure of the mission's scientific agenda, Biosatellite 3 was influential in shaping the life sciences flight experiment program, pointing to the need for centralised management, realistic goals and substantial pre-flight experiment verification testing. The mission objective was to investigate the effect of space flight on brain states, behavioural performance, cardiovascular status, fluid and electrolyte balance, and metabolic state.[4]
Experiments
See also
References
- BIOSAT 3. n2yo.com. Retrieved 14 June 2018.
- Gunter Dirk Krebs Biosat 1, 2, 3 (Bios 1, 2, 3). Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 14 June 2018.
- Jonathan McDowell. Launch Log. Jonathan's Space Page. Retrieved 2018-06-14.
- "Mission information: Biosatellite III". NASA. Retrieved 25 May 2016.
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain. - Antonín Vítek 1969-056A - Biosatellite 3. Katalog družic (in Czech). Retrieved 14 June 2018
- Mark Wade Biosatellite 3. Encyclopedia Astronautica. Retrieved 14 June 2018.
- "Astromonk Dies After Return", Pittsburgh Press, July 8, 1969, p1