Space is a very special environment, without oxygen, weightlessness, alternating hot and cold temperatures, and strong radiation enough to kill humans in a matter of seconds.
As we all know, the former Soviet cosmonaut Gagarin was the first person to enter space and achieved human manned spaceflight for the first time.
In fact, in the early days of human exploration of space, there are many hidden risks, and what will happen to life on Earth in the space environment is unknown.
Therefore, human beings thought of taking the lead with animals, and groups of "animal astronauts" were used as test subjects to embark on the uncertain road of space, replacing humans in space experiments.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="133" > the first dog to go into space</h1>
On October 4, 1957, the former Soviet Union successfully launched the first artificial satellite in human history. On November 3, 1957, the Soviet Union's second sputnik, Sputnik 2, took to the skies and sent a dog named Lyka into space.
The space dog "Laika" became the first animal astronaut to orbit the Earth, and this lonely space journey made Laika the most famous space dog, while also experiencing a cruel death process that no other creature on Earth had experienced.
In fact, Laika's life is very ordinary, just an extremely ordinary member of the many stray dogs on the streets of Moscow, a mixture of Siberian sled dogs and small terriers, but he was inadvertently selected by scientists.
Scientists believe that stray dogs are more adaptable to difficult environments than domestic dogs and are more suitable for space experiments, while Laika has a meek and well-behaved personality, never quarrels with other dogs, and is the most calm and able to endure hardships.
More importantly, the performance of the "Laika" in the training process was also very good, not only in the narrow cockpit on the ground wearing all the equipment quietly spent 20 days, but also the physiological function did not occur disordered, and finally honorably elected.
According to the plan, the "Lycra" will reach a height of 1600 kilometers from the earth and carry out a week-long space trip around the earth. Humans have prepared it with plenty of oxygen, food and water, and installed temperature regulation systems in the cabin.
At the same time, scientists also installed sensors on the surface and under the skin of Laika's body, mainly to monitor the puppy's breathing and heartbeat, and to keep an eye on its vital signs.
However, since humans had not yet mastered the technology to allow astronauts to return to Earth safely, the journey of the space dog "Laika" would certainly be no way back.
Even if Laika did not accidentally die during the flight, it would eventually fall into the atmosphere and burn up with the satellite carrying it.
In the end, "Laika" paid the price of life for this space exploration. In that year, the Soviet Union officially announced the final fate of the "Laika":
Laika completed a week-long mission to reach a height of 1,600 kilometers above Earth, and according to the original plan, it died peacefully after eating the last highly toxic dinner.
According to the data, in order to commemorate the Laika, the former Soviet Union also issued a set of commemorative stamps, and a Lycra monument and a memorial hall were built in Moscow.
Because it was the first Earth life to enter space, "Lycra" became the most famous space stray dog in history, and American newspapers also called the second artificial satellite of the Soviet Union "Lycra's satellite".
Many people know that laika will not come back, but believe that after it completes its mission, it will at least be "euthanized", and in the final stage of life it will die peacefully and peacefully.
However, did Laika really die by eating the "poison" prepared by humans in advance? This is not the truth of death.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="200" > the true cause of death was concealed for 45 years</h1>
In the context of the space race, in order to boast of space achievements, the former Soviet Union weaved a lie about the cause of Laika's death, in fact, Laika's death process was very painful.
In 2002, participating scientist Dimitri Marasankov announced a surprising news:
Laika didn't live that long at all, in fact it died just hours after entering orbit and was in great pain.
The cause of Laika's death was concealed for 45 years, and the actual death process was surprising. Dr. Malasankov recreates Laika's painful "space encounter" to the world:
In fact, shortly after the launch of Sputnik 2, the frantic concussion in the cabin frightened Laika, and it kept hitting the cabin to try to escape. Sensors that monitor Lycra's vital signs show that Lycra's heart rate is 3 times higher than usual due to tension and extreme heat in the cabin.
Five hours later, the satellite entered the atmosphere, the temperature rose sharply, from 18 °C to 41 °C, and the signs of life of Laika began to fade.
Seven hours later, when the satellite orbited the Earth for the fourth week, no more information about Laika's life came back. Due to the excessive pressure and temperature, Laika was very miserable in the final stages of her life and eventually turned into ashes.
However, scientists say that although Laika died early, its short space journey proved that mammals can withstand a certain harsh environment after the rocket launch, and also showed that weightlessness has no serious impact on the body in orbiting spacecraft.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="204" > tribute to the pioneers of space, animal astronauts</h1>
Laika, the first "animal astronaut" to enter space, has accumulated valuable experience for human exploration of manned spaceflight. After that, the Soviet Union improved the sanitary system and survival equipment in the cabin and continued to fly 57 times with dogs in space experiments.
For example, on July 28, 1960, two space dogs, Chaga and Lisiga, boarded a rocket heading into space, but the rocket exploded 28.5 seconds after launch, and the two dogs were tragically killed.
On December 1, 1960, two space dogs, Mushka and Chelka, took off on Sputnik VI, successfully entered orbit and survived a day safely, when an accident occurred during the return to Earth, the spacecraft was decomposed, and the two dogs were unfortunately killed.
In addition to dogs, humans also joined the ranks of animal astronauts such as bees and fruit flies flying in the sky, fish and jellyfish swimming in the water, and rats, monkeys, and chimpanzees running on the ground.
In the process of space exploration, these animals are ahead of humans, doing experiments instead of humans, providing a lot of valuable data for human space, and many animals have died, paying tribute to the animal pioneers who traveled in space!
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