How did Laika die (the cosmonaut)?

In 1957, a significant event occurred in the Soviet Union. In November, a dog was sent to space. This is the first mammal on the planet to have been in space orbit. However, the event is, rather, sad than joyful. Laika was sent into space. The cosmonaut gave the person a lot of information about the flight, but she died.

Preparation for flight

Literally, twelve days before the launch of the missile, a candidate for astronauts was found. At the last moment, the choice of scientists fell on the dog, and not on other mammals. Perhaps, because this animal is popular among the people most of all. And the dog-cosmonaut will become the favorite of the people, scientists decided.

The candidate was taken from a shelter for pets. The pedigree dog was decided not to take, as they are less adapted to difficult conditions. An indispensable condition was the light color of the animal's fur, so that it would be better on photos. The first cosmonaut dog was Laika, who was taken from a conventional shelter.

Training cosmonaut

Preparation began almost immediately after the launch of the first artificial Earth satellite, which instantly became famous. The idea with the flight of an animal is an attempt to consolidate the success of the Soviet Union as a whole and in the space industry in particular. No thoughtful drawings and developments in this area have the country. The device was designed on the go, immediately translating ideas into reality. Laika (the dog-cosmonaut) also underwent special training.

It was clear to everyone that this flight would be only one-way. It was not known only the time that the dog could stretch out to its death in the spacecraft.

Flight

During the take-off on the dog colossal overloads collapsed. She was pushed inside the container, but she heroically endured everything. Initially, the dogs did not create any special amenities for long-term stay in orbit.

The creators of the apparatus thought that the dog would die 6 days after launching, when the apparatus ran out of electricity. But the unforeseen happened. Laika survived only a few hours. The cause of death was excessive heating of the aircraft under the sun. Laika - the first cosmonaut dog brought to Earth's orbit - died in the name of science.

The tragedy of the whole world

The whole world was in sorrow. In the media of many countries, there were reports of the fate of the shaggy creature. Defenders of animals called Khrushchev a flayer, demonstrations and other protests were organized. Mankind, who enthusiastically received news of the launch of the first artificial satellite, is expecting the death of a four-legged friend. Such progress they did not need.

Western countries already mentioned Laika, and in the Soviet Union the mass media continued to inform the people about the condition of the already dead dog. Only on the eighth day there was a report on the problems of communication with the space satellite. Subsequently, the USSR reported that the animal was allegedly put to sleep. And that's how Lika entered the story. The cosmonaut allowed the engineers to take into account many features of the aircraft in order to send a person into space in the future.

Public opinion

These news did not suit the Soviet people. The reason was this: people did not know that this flight was originally planned at one end. Citizens hoped to see the hero of this space flight after his return to Earth. Because of this, the achievement of domestic cosmonautics did not seem so bright. But in fact, colossal conclusions were drawn, and became the hero Laika (the cosmonaut dog). Photos of the animal are available in all the museums of astronautics.

Especially painful death of the dog took the younger generation. From above was instructed to conduct explanatory talks among schoolchildren about:

1. The mastery of outer space is important for the country.
2. The life of a dog in comparison with opening prospects is incomparable.
3. Laika is now known all over the world, and before that she was not known to anyone.

But the people could not calm down for a long time. One could even hear a joke about the fact that Khrushchev himself flies into space. In Moscow, citizens sent proposals on awarding the mongrel the title of Hero of the Soviet Union posthumously and even conferring on her a military rank. Rumor has it that this issue was even discussed in the government.

The authorities at that time had not yet learned to influence public opinion. The decision was made by the following method: new cigarettes and cigarettes Laika appeared on the market. Perhaps in government circles they hoped that feelings of empathy and grief for citizens would turn into smoke. There was an idea to release other products with this name, but later they refused this idea - it could turn out to be too much. Nevertheless, the heroically dead Laika (the cosmonaut) became a world celebrity. Although she was the most common mongrel, who accidentally ended up in a shelter.