Foton M3 Mission Brochure

Publication date: 10 September 2007

Foton spacecraft are based on the design of the Russian Vostok spacecraft, in which Yuri Gagarin was put into orbit in 1961 and the Zenit military reconnaissance satellite. Bion was the first of the Foton type of unmanned spacecraft to be launched in 1973 with the emphasis on how the space environment acts on living creatures. ESA were involved in three Bion missions: Bion-8 in 1987 Bion-9 in 1989 and Bion-10 in 1992.

Foton was first launched into low-earth orbit in 1985. The earlier Foton missions were conceived primarily for materials science research, but later missions also began to include experiments in the fields of fluid physics, biology and radiation dosimetry. ESA's participation in eight previous missions started in 1991 with a protein crystallisation experiment on-board Foton-7. The previous mission with ESA involvement was the Foton-M2 mission in 2005. Foton M is an improved version of the spacecraft, with larger battery capacity, enhanced thermal control and increased telemetry and telecommand capabilities for increased data flow. Foton-M3 becomes the ninth Foton mission with ESA involvement.

Link to Publication: http://sci.esa.int/science-e/www/object/doc.cfm?fobjectid=41308

Last Update: 19 January 2010