Laika-Soviet Space Dog

 

Laika was a Soviet space dog that was one of the first animals to travel to space and orbit the Earth. Laika, a stray mongrel from Moscow's streets, was chosen as the first occupant of the Soviet spacecraft Sputnik 2, which was launched into low orbit on November 3, 1957.  

At the time of Laika's voyage, nothing was understood about the effects of spaceflight on live organisms, and the technology to de-orbit had not yet been invented, therefore Laika's survival was never predicted. Because some scientists feared that humans would not be able to survive the launch or the harsh environment of space, engineers saw animal expeditions as an essential prelude to human missions. The goal of the experiment was to show that a living passenger could survive being launched into orbit and surviving in a micro-g environment, paving the door for human spaceflight and providing scientists with some of the first data on how living beings react to micro-g situations.

Russian officials raised a monument to Laika on April 11, 2008. In her honor, a tiny monument was erected at the Moscow military research complex that developed Laika for her space mission. It featured a dog perched on a rocket. She is also shown on the Monument to the Space Conquerors in Moscow.