Fifty-four cockroaches are back home in the central Russian city of Voronezh after orbiting the earth for 12 days. The insects were part of an experiment aimed at measuring the effects of space travel on living organisms.
Medical students chose cockroaches for the mission because of their small size and high stamina. Scientists are now monitoring them to record the effects of near-zero gravity on living things. They hope the results may prove helpful when sending people into space.