Laika, the Space Explorer's best friend
I read about Neil Armstrong's rather humorous news article on the web recently. He was trying to sue a barber for selling his hair to somebody without his consent. It made me revive my interest in space and all things related to it.
I have always wanted to post blog on the topic of astronomy, more than anything else. If only I had a chance I would still apply for a job at any agency related to space research, whether at Hubble space telescope development, jet propulsion labs, cape canaveral, baikonur in kazakhstan, or the mountains of Chile or Hawaii, staring into the vastness of the space beyond. But I know I can't.
So what best I can do is to read through the annals of history and look back at the pioneers who make things happen in an effort to become part of this history making journey of space exploration.
One of the things I read was about the stray mongrel of Moscow paving way to the appearances of Yuri Gagarin, Neil Armstrong and other space explorers to become heroes in this generation of space travel. Maybe it was a case of cruelty to animals but somehow, as man's best friend, a dog can't seem to turn down a master's request even if it meant certain death before even a request has been made.
Laika, whose name meant barker in Russian language, is the poster dog for animal testing, recently considered inhuman, er, too cruel for that matter. Fellow testing species guinea pig and mouse replaced the canines as well as monkeys in later years but it was during the 1940s when animals became baits for humans to see how a living creature behaves on certain extreme conditions or simply testing new products.
In fact, it was a fruit fly that was the first living thing that was sent to space shortly after World War II. The Russians signaled a space race to commence as a way to prove who is more powerful among the known superpowers at the time. I read my science book in Sixth Grade about that adorable dog who went to space. But the book did not tell the sad tale that happened to Laika, who died seven hours after Sputnik 2, the machine she was told to board, was launched. And probably because at the time of printing, the book publishers knew little of the Soviet embarrassment, only knowing that the dog had been euthanized in the first place.
It was that leader Nikita Kruschev who ordered to launch a spacecraft to mark the 40th anniversary of the Bolshevik revolution that prompted the formation of the ill-fated voyage which Laika had became a sacrificial animal and whose life was doomed the very moment the idea was conceived.
Just like any astronaut or cosmonaut preparing for space mission, Laika also underwent hours of "training", being subjected to numerous physical tests and simulators.
When the flight took place on 3 November 1957, a physically harrassed dog inside the cockpit was detected with all those harness preventing her from moving about and all those monitors attached to her, measuring vital signs. Literally deprived from how dogs should live, she was clearly terrified up, up there. Little did she know that the small place she was contained would become her virtual coffin. Or did she?
The Soviet government's skillful penchant for coverup and lies made things wrapped until about half a century later. But the crew and staff who worked with Laika were aware that it was a disaster waiting to happen. Even if Sputnik 2 was able to successfully orbit the Earth 2,570 times before burning up in space, people behind Soviet Space Program knew it was a one way trip for Laika. Hastily making the space machine at little time to suit the whim of the ideologically-obsessed leader, there was very little those scientists could do to avoid a certain death, let alone the innocent Laika.
The world did not let the foolishness pass. And since the damage has been done, the only thing it could do is to honor a pioneer. Laika's portrait appeared in commemorative materials such as stamps, several songs notably one from the Cardigans, and brands of cigarettes and chocolates bearing her name. For it was Laika who paved the way for humans to cross the bounds of being a terrestrial being to a space wizard.
I have always wanted to post blog on the topic of astronomy, more than anything else. If only I had a chance I would still apply for a job at any agency related to space research, whether at Hubble space telescope development, jet propulsion labs, cape canaveral, baikonur in kazakhstan, or the mountains of Chile or Hawaii, staring into the vastness of the space beyond. But I know I can't.
So what best I can do is to read through the annals of history and look back at the pioneers who make things happen in an effort to become part of this history making journey of space exploration.
One of the things I read was about the stray mongrel of Moscow paving way to the appearances of Yuri Gagarin, Neil Armstrong and other space explorers to become heroes in this generation of space travel. Maybe it was a case of cruelty to animals but somehow, as man's best friend, a dog can't seem to turn down a master's request even if it meant certain death before even a request has been made.
Laika, whose name meant barker in Russian language, is the poster dog for animal testing, recently considered inhuman, er, too cruel for that matter. Fellow testing species guinea pig and mouse replaced the canines as well as monkeys in later years but it was during the 1940s when animals became baits for humans to see how a living creature behaves on certain extreme conditions or simply testing new products.
In fact, it was a fruit fly that was the first living thing that was sent to space shortly after World War II. The Russians signaled a space race to commence as a way to prove who is more powerful among the known superpowers at the time. I read my science book in Sixth Grade about that adorable dog who went to space. But the book did not tell the sad tale that happened to Laika, who died seven hours after Sputnik 2, the machine she was told to board, was launched. And probably because at the time of printing, the book publishers knew little of the Soviet embarrassment, only knowing that the dog had been euthanized in the first place.
It was that leader Nikita Kruschev who ordered to launch a spacecraft to mark the 40th anniversary of the Bolshevik revolution that prompted the formation of the ill-fated voyage which Laika had became a sacrificial animal and whose life was doomed the very moment the idea was conceived.
Just like any astronaut or cosmonaut preparing for space mission, Laika also underwent hours of "training", being subjected to numerous physical tests and simulators.
When the flight took place on 3 November 1957, a physically harrassed dog inside the cockpit was detected with all those harness preventing her from moving about and all those monitors attached to her, measuring vital signs. Literally deprived from how dogs should live, she was clearly terrified up, up there. Little did she know that the small place she was contained would become her virtual coffin. Or did she?
The Soviet government's skillful penchant for coverup and lies made things wrapped until about half a century later. But the crew and staff who worked with Laika were aware that it was a disaster waiting to happen. Even if Sputnik 2 was able to successfully orbit the Earth 2,570 times before burning up in space, people behind Soviet Space Program knew it was a one way trip for Laika. Hastily making the space machine at little time to suit the whim of the ideologically-obsessed leader, there was very little those scientists could do to avoid a certain death, let alone the innocent Laika.
The world did not let the foolishness pass. And since the damage has been done, the only thing it could do is to honor a pioneer. Laika's portrait appeared in commemorative materials such as stamps, several songs notably one from the Cardigans, and brands of cigarettes and chocolates bearing her name. For it was Laika who paved the way for humans to cross the bounds of being a terrestrial being to a space wizard.
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12:06 AM
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