On this day in space! Sept. 15, 1968: Russian tortoises (& other critters) launch around the moon on Zond 5 spacecraft in wild first circumlunar flight

The Soviet Union launched the Zond 5 spacecraft on a mission to loop around the moon and return to Earth on September 15, 1968.

The spacecraft carried several smaller vertebrates, including tortoises, wine flies, mealworms, plants, and seeds, making them the first animals in deep space and the first to travel around the moon.