Laika

Also known as Zhuchka, Limonchik, Muttnik, Kudryavka

Laika ( ; , ; – 3 November 1957) was a Soviet space dog who was one of the first animals in space and the first to orbit the Earth. A stray mongrel from the streets of Moscow, she flew aboard the Sputnik 2 spacecraft, launched into low orbit on 3 November 1957. As the technology to re-enter the atmosphere had not yet been developed, Laika's survival was never expected. She died of hyperthermia hours into the flight, on the craft's fourth orbit.

AI overview

Laika was a Soviet stray dog who became the first animal to orbit Earth when she launched aboard Sputnik 2 on November 3, 1957. Though her mission was one-way and she died within hours from overheating, her flight provided crucial data that helped make human spaceflight safer.

AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.

Key facts

Animal.birth_name: Laika ()
Animal.image: Laika (Soviet dog).jpg
Animal.landscape: yes
Animal.caption: Laika in a flight harness
Animal.othername: Kudryavka (, "Curly")
Animal.species: Canis familiaris
Animal.breed: Mongrel, possibly part-husky (or part-Samoyed) and part-terrier
Animal.gender: Female
Animal.birth_place: Moscow, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union
Animal.death_place: Sputnik 2, in low Earth orbit
Animal.death_cause: hyperthermia
Animal.known: First animal to orbit the Earth
Animal.owner: Soviet space program

via Wikipedia infobox

Wikidata facts

Mass: 6
Image: Posta Romana - 1959 - Laika 120 B.jpg

Show 7 more facts

Commons category: Laika
date of birth: 1954-00-00
date of death: 1957-11-03
Commons gallery: Laika
name in native language: Лайка
heart rate: 102
nickname: Frisette

Sources (7)

via Wikidata · CC0

~16 min read

Article

11 sections

Contents

Sputnik 2
Training
Preflight preparations
Voyage
Ethics of animal testing
Tributes
Notes
References
Sources
Further reading
External links

Little was known about the effects of spaceflight on living creatures at the time of Laika's mission, and animal flights were viewed by engineers as a necessary precursor to human missions. The experiment, which monitored Laika's vital signs, aimed to prove that a living organism could survive being launched into orbit and continue to function under conditions of weakened gravity and increased radiation, providing scientists with some of the first data on the biological effects of spaceflight.