INQUISITR.COM / Science & Tech

Russian Sex Satellite Geckos Are Safe, Honored In Awesome Poster

By Dustin Wicksell
Published on: 15:24 PST, Jul 31, 2014

Russian scientists have regained control of their gecko sex satellite, and in honor of the bizarre event that made headlines around the world, artist Fernando Reza has debuted a poster depicting the plight of the spacebound lizards.

Controllers with Russia’s space agency were able to re-establish contact with the Foton-M4 satellite this past weekend, according to NBC News.

In a statement, Roscosmos chief Oleg Ostapenko said that “The link is established, the prescribed commands have been conducted in accordance with the plan.” The contingent of geckos contained aboard the satellite were apparently unharmed during the brief period in which Russian controllers were unable to contact the spacecraft.

As The Inquisitr has previously reported, the Russian satellite was launched on July 19 with the intention of studying the effects of microgravity on living organisms. The satellite contains fruit flies, microbes, plants, and several geckos, one male and four females. The experiment was designed to test how the geckos mate in zero gravity. Upon returning to Earth, scientists will study video of the geckos, as well as their eggs, to determine if there are any effects from the two-month-long mission.

According to io9, artist Fernando Reza decided to commemorate the event by designing a poster in his signature style, depicting the geckos floating weightless across their reptilian satellite of love. A graphic designer based in Los Angeles, Reza counts Huffington Post’s Arts Page, Nascar Illustrated, and the Mens Health’s Holiday Gift Guide as just some of the places his work has appeared, according to his website.

Roscosmos is investigating whether an internal glitch or damage from space debris caused the communication breakdown with the satellite. It isn’t the first time that the space agency has had trouble with one of their satellites. Last March, an orbiter crashed to Earth, carrying a similar payload of experimental animals. Following a 30 day stint in orbit, the crew of geckos, mice, and gerbils failed to survive, in Russia’s first attempt in 17 years to launch animals into space.

Ostapenko said that he expects the current mission to meet 90 percent of its objectives by the time it returns, bringing the Russian satellite, and its crew of geckos, back to Earth.

[Image via The Mary Sue]

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