People have been staring at the stars for a long time, but it wasn’t until the 1940s that humanity reached for them. In 1957, a stray dog from Moscow, Russia was sent into space. Her name was Laika, and she was the first animal to successfully journey into Earth’s orbit.
In her small spaceship, the Huskey-mix had one meal and only seven days worth of oxygen. In the chilly month of November, she was rocketed from Russia, about 2,000 miles into Earth’s orbit. She wasn’t, however, the first animal in space. The first animals ever sent into space were fruit flies, sent by the U.S. on February 20, 1947. The first monkey launched into space was Albert 1 of the U.S., but he didn’t reach orbit. The U.S. would continue to use monkeys in their space experiences, while Russia used dogs.
Laika also wasn’t the first dog the Soviets launched toward the stars. That honor belongs to Tsygan and Dezik, who were launched on July 22, 1951. They did not make it into orbit, though, and were actually recovered from the flight.
Laika was a stray, rescued from the streets, in order to participate in these space experiments. Because Laika was a stray, the scientists were certain that she could survive in the harsh, cold conditions of space.
The dogs were kept in pressurized capsules, first for short periods of time, then for whole weeks. Their bodies were tested to see how they reacted to the changes in air pressure, their responses to loud noises, and if they would eat the gel space food provided for them.
Before the flight, medical devices were implanted in Laika’s body, so the teams back on Earth could monitor her heart and breathing rates, and her blood pressure.
The plan was to get Laika into space, but not to retrieve her. The scientists working on the project expected her to die from oxygen deprivation when her mission was up. One of the researchers, Vladimir Yazdovsky, took Laika home before her flight, to give her a happy last day on Earth. Another physician working on the team broke the rules and fed Laika some food before she was sent into orbit.
From the declassified information provided about the journey, we know that Laika was terrified. As soon as the shuttle was launched, her heart rate skyrocketed. While she reached orbit alive, she was afraid, and the temperature inside the space capsule was drastically increasing. Laika died after circling the Earth for an hour and forty-three minutes.
Not wanting to alarm the public, who at this point supported - and were fascinated by - space travel, the USSR claimed that Laika had survived entry into orbit. After that nine-day farse, they officially pronounced her as deceased.
DID YOU KNOW? Laika’s name was originally Kudryavka (Little Curly). The name Laika means “barker” in Russia.
Why Send Animals into Space?
While laws about the treatment of animals have changed since the 40s and 50s, animals are still used today to test things that may not be safe for humans. This includes makeup and personal care products, health drugs, and behavioral experiments. In 2014, a colony of ants was sent to the International Space Station, to see how microgravity affected their movements and search for food.
Scientists had no idea what would happen to a human who was sent into space. They used animals to see if it was even possible to get a mammal into space, if it was safe, and what things could possibly go wrong. Since those early experiments, astronauts have studied animals ranging from jellyfish to cockroaches.
In Memoriam to Laika
In 2015, a new statue of Laika was revealed in Moscow, Russia, showing her atop a rocket.
Opinion! Today, we still send animals into space, to gather more research on the effects it has on them. Write a one-page opinion piece about whether or not we should be using animals in these experiments. Provide evidence to back up your answer, and at least one additional source (outside of Historical Conquest).