Laika (Muttnik) on SciLogs

Laika in her capsule before her November 3, 1957 launch. Credit: NASA

On Saturday, October 5, 1957, word that the Soviets had put a 184-pound satellite, Sputnik, into orbit the night before spread throughout the United States. Fear and paranoia spread throughout the country while the Soviet Union celebrated, specifically the scientists who had built and launched the small satellite. Soviet Chief Designer Sergei Korolev allowed his men to take a brief vacation at the seaside resort of Sochi, the first in many years, but he didn’t rest himself. Instead, he met with Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev to plan the next Soviet coup in space – launching a dog into orbit in time for the 40th anniversary of the Great October Socialist Revolution on November 7. The whole story is up over at SciLogs.