Laika

As in most new ventures, there is risk involved, but sometimes it seems like the risk is too much. When the race to put a man in space began, the fight was on between the United States and the Soviet Union. It was a fight that would eventually be won by the Soviet Union…but at what cost. Putting a man in space was going to be a big deal, but no one knew if space was a safe place, or if humans could even survive in space. It was an unusual dilemma, and it needed an unusual solution.

During the 1950s and 1960s, the Soviet space program utilized dogs for sub-orbital and orbital space flights to assess the viability of human spaceflight. These dogs, including the first animal in space, named Laika, were used to orbit the Earth, and underwent surgical modifications to collect vital data for human survival in space. The program often selected female dogs for their anatomical fit with the spacesuits and mixed-breed dogs for their perceived resilience, but there was just one problem. The dogs didn’t really understand what was going on, and there was no human to calm them down.

Laika, a part-Siberian Husky, was once a stray wandering the streets of Moscow before being recruited into the Soviet space program. She was used to little human contact. Nevertheless, she got used to it is the space program. While in space, she endured several hours aboard the USSR’s second artificial Earth satellite, sustained by an advanced life-support system. Electrodes connected to her body transmitted vital data to ground scientists about the physiological impacts of spaceflight. I just don’t see how poor Laika could have possibly understood all of this. Unfortunately, Laika died due to overheating and severe emotional stress.

During this period of testing, the Soviet Union conducted missions that included at least 57 dogs as passengers. Several dogs were sent on multiple flights. The majority survived, with most fatalities resulting from technical failures within the test parameters. Laika was a notable exception, as her death was anticipated during the Sputnik 2 mission orbiting Earth on November 3, 1957.

In preparation for the first manned Soviet space mission, over a dozen Russian dogs were sent into space, and unfortunately, at least five died during the flight. I think that if it were me, I would be pretty apprehensive about going into space after five dogs had died trying to do so. Nevertheless, on April 12, 1961, Yuri Gagarin, a Soviet cosmonaut, made history as the first person ever to journey into space. Traveling aboard Vostok 1, he completed one orbit around Earth before safely returning to the USSR. While it was a man that made history as the first person in space, it was a dog name Laika that actually paved the way…giving her life in the effort.