On This Day in Space! Nov. 3, 1957: Laika the Dog Launches with Sputnik 2
The rushed mission carried biological sensors and had no recovery plan, as Soviet leaders sought to sustain momentum after Sputnik 1.
- On this date in history, the Soviets launched Sputnik 2, sending the first living creature into Earth orbit; the mission carried a mixed-breed dog named Laika.
- The Soviets prepared the mission rapidly to maintain propaganda momentum from the previous Sputnik flight and to coincide with the 40th anniversary of the Bolshevik Revolution.
- Before the flight, Laika underwent training in Moscow to adapt to close quarters and gravity changes, while electrodes collected biological data on the effects of space travel.
- Unfortunately, Laika died just hours after takeoff, the expected outcome since the Soviets had no recovery plan for the satellite or its passenger.
- Decades later, a statue in Moscow commemorates Laika after the satellite burned up on reentry in 1958, preserving the dog's legacy in space exploration history.
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29 Articles
Alamy A lesser-known story from the space race during the Cold War (1947-1991) is the journey undertaken by scientists in search of stray dogs on the streets of Moscow — at the time, the capital of the Soviet Union (1922-1991). Before the first space flights with humans, female dogs were trained to make the extremely dangerous journey. And, on November 3, 1957, one of them, named Laika, was launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome, in what was then…
In November 1957, Soviet scientists sent the Laika dog on a backless journey, making it a tragic national heroine. About 60 years later, the son of one of the scientists told the BBC that he played with Laika when he was a child.
In November 1957, Soviet scientists sent Laika into space. A one-way trip that made the dog a national heroine.
Nov. 3, 1957: The flight of Laika
Less than a month after the launch of Sputnik 1, the Soviets launched Sputnik 2. The mission was readied quickly in order to keep the propaganda momentum from Sputnik 1 and to coincide with the 40th anniversary of the Bolshevik Revolution. Carrying mixed-breed dog Laika, Sputnik 2 was the first flight to carry a livingContinue reading "Nov. 3, 1957: The flight of Laika"
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