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Russians Aim to Send Monkey to Mars

Robot would look after primate during 520-day round trip

By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff

Posted Dec 22, 2009 4:16 AM CST

(Newser) – The first Earthling to reach Mars may be a Russian monkey, according to scientists at an ex-Soviet facility. The director of an institute that supplied monkeys to the Soviet space program in the '80s says the facility is in talks with Russia's Cosmonautics Academy over supplying animals for a simulated Mars mission. A real mission could follow with a robot on board to look after the monkey, he says.

The robot would feed and clean up after the monkey during the 520-day round trip. "Technicians have told us that it's not difficult to build such a robot," the institute's director tells AFP. "The hard part is teaching the monkey to live with the robot."

A rhesus monkey returns to earth after a NASA experiment in 1955.
A rhesus monkey returns to earth after a NASA experiment in 1955.   (Getty Images)
A Hubble Space Telescope photograph of Mars.
A Hubble Space Telescope photograph of Mars.   (AP Photo/NASA)
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Given the length of the flight to Mars, and given the cosmic rays for which we don't have adequate protection over such a long trip, discussions have focused recently on sending an ape instead of a person.
- Zurab Mikvabia, director of the Institute
of Experimental Pathology and Therapy

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COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 30 comments
Cat-Lover
Dec 25, 2009 12:53 PM CST
The hard part isn't "...teaching the monkey to live with the robot." The hard part is teaching the Russians to do a mechanical dry-run before putting any LIFE in jeapordy. Some people advocate for the "Unborn"; I advocate animals!
snokeheat
Dec 24, 2009 9:49 AM CST
There you go Obama!
sidewinder
Dec 23, 2009 10:20 AM CST
@RockyPneumonia --I knew someone would race bait...if someone says Bush it's funny? But they say Obama and it has to be racism? ---sad silly little people.

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