#Laika sputnik how to#

Apparently the Soviet scientists had insufficient time to perfect life-support systems because of intense political pressure to launch Sputnik 2 in time for the celebration of the 40th anniversary of the Bolshevik Revolution.Laika (meaning 'barker') went to an altitude of almost 2,000 miles aboard Sputnik 2, one month after the Soviet Union stunned the world and triggered the space race with Sputnik 1, the first object in orbit.įor the next 40 years, Kremlin chiefs allowed the rest of the world to believe that Laika lived to see the 40th anniversary of the October Revolution and then died peacefully. It was belatedly made known that Laika’s pulse rate, which had been measured with electrodes, tripled during takeoff and only came down somewhat during weightlessness. Laika had actually survived only about five to seven hours after liftoff before dying of overheating and panic.

In 2002, however, Russian scientist Dimitri Malashenkov revealed that the previous accounts of her death were false. Laika’s sad fate aroused worldwide concern and sympathy. The satellite was destroyed reentering Earth’s atmosphere on April 14, 1958. The satellite and its passenger soon acquired the journalistic nickname of “Muttnik.” Contemporaneous Soviet accounts implied that the dog was kept alive for six or seven days into the mission and then euthanized with poisoned food before her oxygen supply could run out. When the launch was announced, Laika became an international celebrity. Test your knowledge of those who had the right stuff to travel into space. SpaceNext50 Britannica presents SpaceNext50, From the race to the Moon to space stewardship, we explore a wide range of subjects that feed our curiosity about space!.Learn about the major environmental problems facing our planet and what can be done about them! Saving Earth Britannica Presents Earth’s To-Do List for the 21st Century.Britannica Beyond We’ve created a new place where questions are at the center of learning.

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#Laika sputnik how to#

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