Russian recoverable spacecraft prepared for launch

A Soyuz rocket is set for launch Friday with a Russian Foton spacecraft carrying several tons of experiments, including geckos, fruit flies and plant seeds to gauge their changes during a flight lasting up to two months.

Liftoff is set for 2050 GMT (4:50 p.m. EDT) from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. The Soyuz 2-1a rocket rolled to the launch pad Thursday evening, local time, later than Soyuz boosters are usually transferred from the integration building at the spaceport.

The late rollout allowed Russian technicians to install time-sensitive cargo into the Foton M4 space capsule, then encapsulate the spacecraft inside an aerodynamic fairing that will shield the satellite during the early stages of launch.

Officials say the Foton M4 spacecraft is packed with 22 investigations, all from Russian institutions. The launch will put the satellite into an orbit about 575 kilometers, or 357 miles, above Earth.

Credit: Roscosmos
 

Credit: Roscosmos
 

Credit: Roscosmos
 

Credit: Roscosmos
 

Credit: Roscosmos
 

Credit: Roscosmos