Between 1948 and 1961, more than 48 dogs were sent on Soviet space missions. Now NASA resumes the exploration of the Moon as part of the Artemis mission and the dog again becomes a member of the crew of the spacecraft, writes ABC of Spain.
However, not a simple one, but a robot.
Lourdes Gomez
For the first three years of her life, she wandered the streets of Moscow, so when she was selected for the Soviet space program, she was already “hardened” by cold and hunger.
That is why, by some candidates, this mixture with the features of the Husky breed, became an “astronaut”.
Also Read: Check out our coverage on curated alternative narratives
After going through different names, they decided to call the dog Laika. Before her, the USSR had already used dogs in space missions, but it was with her that they achieved success … or so they said.
The Soviet operation with the launch of Sputnik-2 was successful.
The spacecraft circled the Earth at a certain height at a specified time, which four years later, in 1961, allowed Yuri Gagarin to become the first person to perform the same mission as Laika aboard the Vostok-1 spacecraft.
What was not said in the USSR was about Laika’s sad fate.
Initially, the information was only partially given, they said that she died from lack of oxygen, that she survived four days… But obviously, at the time, nobody really cared.
Everyone was focused on the political consequences of space exploration, which was then obsessed with the USSR.
Only in October 2002, scientist Dmitry Malashenkov, who participated in the launch of Sputnik-2, said that Laika died of overheating 5-7 hours after launch.
The temperature in the cabin was very high then. It took many technical advances to make it habitable.
The return of the ship to Earth was not foreseen. Initially, it was known that Laika was sentenced to death.
Sputnik 2, carrying the remnants of Laika, made 2,570 orbits around Earth in 163 days and burned up in the atmosphere on April 14, 1958.
More fortunate were two other Soviet mixes, which not only circled the Earth, but also returned unscathed.
Their names were Belka and Strelka, and they went on a flight in 1960.
By the way, one of Strelka’s puppies, named Pushinka, was given to the Kennedy family by Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev.
Between 1948 and 1961, more than 48 dogs were sent on space missions.
Now NASA is resuming lunar exploration as part of the Artemis mission, and dogs are once again part of the spacecraft’s crew.
It is planned that in 2024 a woman will land on the moon for the first time, as well as a dog.
Not a simple one, but a robot.
The European Science Initiative is engaged in the Aristarchus Plateau Walking Exploration LEAP, a walking study of the Aristarchus Plateau.
Researchers have created a robot dog ANYmal, which is very similar to the creations of Boston Dynamics.
According to the idea, the robot dogs will have to perform the same tasks as the lunar rovers; only they will be more mobile.
This will make it possible to study more complex lunar surfaces, such as the Aristarchusrchus plateau – a place rich in minerals, but inaccessible.
ANYmal can climb steep slopes, deploy instruments for scientific research, and get back up when it falls.
With its legs, the robot can dig trenches and collect samples.
The robot’s legs are better suited to the task than the lunar rover’s wheels.
Scientists also note the dexterity of robots and their ability to overcome long distances in a short period of time.
With their help, you can move multispectral sensors, radars, mass spectrometers and other tools.
Maybe ANYmal won’t be as cute as Laika, but it will cause less criticism if they suddenly have to sacrifice for the sake of science.
THE TRAGIC ALBERT SAGA
The first monkey to fly into space was the rhesus macaque Albert II, who in 1949 went there on a V-2 rocket.
Two years later, Yorick flew, becoming the first monkey to return alive from space.
The purpose of the studies was to study physiological responses at an altitude of 70 kilometers.
Albert II was one of many Alberts that NASA sent on various expeditions. All died either from overheating or from the rocket explosion.
The first Albert became famous under the number two, which gave rise to conspiracy theories that there was another First Albert, which in 1948 was attached to the V-2 rocket as part of a secret mission.
But in fact, Albert I cannot be called a “space animal” because he did not reach the minimum altitude for flight to be considered space.
He reached an altitude of 62.3 kilometers instead of the specified 100. The monkey died of suffocation.
WORK OF INSECTS AT HIGH ALTITUDE
But fruit flies were the first living species sent into space for scientific purposes aboard V-2 rockets.
The first mission took place in 1946.
The aim was to study the effects of radiation at high altitudes. It turned out that the radiation caused premature aging in the flies.
Later, in 1973, two cruciferous spiders were sent to the SkyLab space laboratory to see if they could weave a web in microgravity.
The spiders Anita and Arabella were able to weave webs, but they were thinner than usual, and two months later, the insects died of dehydration.
CHIMPANZEES WITH HERO MEDALS
Ham became the first chimpanzee to go into space. The mission was launched in January 1961.
During the flight, Ham performed various tasks that he had been trained to do at NASA, such as moving levers.
The experimental flight took place four months before the mission of the first American astronaut Alan Shepard.
Ham returned to Earth unharmed and received the Hero Medal.
It seems that space missions involving primates are a thing of the past, but in 2013 Iran sent a monkey into space, suggesting that the country plans to send a human in the coming years.
A monkey from Tehran reached a height of 120 kilometers and returned alive to Earth.
RABBIT, TURTLE, ALBANIAN, FISH
Turtles, rabbits, fish and lizards also received the “privilege” of becoming crew members on flights at an altitude of more than 100 kilometers.
The first animals to fly around the Moon were turtles launched in 1968 aboard the Soviet Zond-5 spacecraft.
In 1970, two frogs were sent into space to study microgravity. The study helped a lot in the installation of the International Space Station.
RETURN OF THE ASTRO CAT WITH PARACHUTE
Astro Cat, as it was then called in the press, France sent into space in 1963 as part of the operation of the future European Space Agency to measure the nerve impulses of the cat.
The stray cat Felisette reached an altitude of more than 200 kilometers and descended in a parachute capsule.
The cat arrived alive on Earth, but two months later, it was euthanized to study the effect of being in space on the brain.
THE JORRIZORS SURVIVED IN ALL CONDITIONS
The last heroes of space travel were unique animals – tardigrades, also known as “water bears”.
These microscopic creatures can adapt to extreme conditions, so in 2007 they conducted research to check if they would survive in space for ten days without any protection.
And they succeeded, despite the lack of oxygen, cosmic and solar radiation, shallow temperatures and microgravity.
As it turned out, these were the first living creatures that could survive in outer space and their natural shell.
A few years ago, a fantastic story happened, but with other invertebrates.
Hundreds of worms sent on an experiment into space aboard the space shuttle Columbia in 2003 were found alive in the wreckage of the ship weeks after the disaster that claimed the lives of all seven crew members.
The ship then crashed shortly after takeoff.
The worms not only survived, but also reproduced four times.
Join us on Telegram: t.me/theriotimes
