The Fate of Laika !
Laika was launched into space aboard the Soviet spacecraft Sputnik 2 on November 3, 1957. Because the technology to safely return a spacecraft from orbit had not yet been developed, her mission was, from the outset, a one-way trip. The Soviet space programme never intended her to survive. What Actually Happened For decades, the Soviet government maintained a cover-up about her end, officially claiming that she survived for several days in orbit and was eventually humanely euthanised via poisoned food before her oxygen supply ran out. However, in 2002, the true details of her final hours were declassified and made public by scientists involved in the mission: • The Launch: During liftoff, telemetry data showed that Laika was terrified. Her heart rate rocketed to more than three times its normal resting rate, and her breathing quadrupled. • The Malfunction: After reaching orbit, the capsule’s thermal control system malfunctioned, partly because the R-7 rocket core failed to separate prop...