LIVES OF THE ANIMAL ASTRONAUTS

Muttnik orbits Earth

Perished

n the mid-20th century, the USSR launched dozens of hardy stray dogs above Earth’s atmosphere to test whether humans could handle the rigours of space. The most famous of these is Laika – the first living creature to go into orbit. Captured wandering the streets of Moscow, Laika – which means ‘Barker’ in Russian – was strapped into a tiny space dog safety module and launched aboard Sputnik 2. Though Soviet scientists never intended Laika to return to Earth alive, at the time they suggested she had survived in space for between four days and a week before dying peacefully. It was later revealed in 2002 that her demise had been rather more harrowing. Laika had died from overheating and panic no more than seven hours after the mission began because a fan had failed. Her capsule orbited Earth 2,570 times before burning up in the atmosphere five months after blast off. In August 1960 a canine pair named Belka, or ‘Squirrel’, and Strelka, or ‘Little Arrow’ – joined by a rabbit, 42 mice and two rats – were strapped into Sputnik 5. These animals came to a less grisly end, launching into space and safely returning unharmed. Eight months later cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin famously followed in their pawsteps. Strelka went on to have six puppies, one of which – named Pushinka, or ‘Fluffy’ – was given to US president