This memorial is for Laika the space dog. A tiny little dog who passed away in space.

Laika was a little stray dog on the streets of Moscow, before scientists who worked for the soviet space program took her and a few other dogs off the streets with them.

They took those dogs with them because an awful man named Nikita Khrushchev decided it would be a good idea to send a dog into space. The Space Race was taking place and at that time, no one knew what effects spaceflight had on living creatures. And they couldn’t risk sending a human, so they chose dogs. Nikita wanted it done in less than a month, so the scientists got to work. I don't think any of the people working there wanted to send a dog, but they had no choice. They could face an awful punishment if they disobeyed their party leader. So they picked some dogs off the streets to run tests on.

Laika was probably so happy, thinking she finally had a home. That's all she wanted. A home with people who would love her. And they did love her. The scientists who worked with her and trained her loved her. They didn't want to send her on a one way mission. But they had to. Laika’s training included standing still for long periods of time wearing a space suit, being placed in simulators that accelerate like a rocket launch, and being kept in progressively smaller cages to prepare her for the confines of the space capsule. I doubt Laika liked doing these things, but she did it for them. Because she wanted to be a good girl. That’s one reason why they chose her too. She was small, calm, she learned quickly, and since she was female, she wouldn’t have to stand up while urinating. There were other things but I won’t list them right now.

The scientists there loved her. They gave her nicknames like lemon, bug, and Kudryavka (little curly). There was one scientist she was especially close with though. Vladimir Yasdovsky. And he would end up doing something very nice for Laika.

A few days before the launch, Vladimir took Laika to his home to play with his children. He wrote in his book years later, “Laika was quiet and calm. I wanted to do something nice for her. She had such little time left to live.” I’m sure Laika was so happy playing with his kids. I’m sure she liked the lab a little bit since that was her home, but she must have thought his house was heaven. I am very grateful for what he did too. He could’ve been in serious trouble if someone found out that he had taken her home since she was government property. It makes me happy and sad at the same time. Because she was probably so happy getting to play with his kids. But that should've been what she diddaily. Not training in centrifuges and being in small cages. That was probably the best day of her life.

Not long after that, Laika was taken on her final walk before being fitted with space garments and sensors. Laika was probably so confused and scared. She probably just wanted to go back to her master's house and play with his kids again. Something else that makes me very sad is that before the scientists closed the hatch on her rocket (Sputnik 2), they kissed her nose and wished her bon voyage. And then she was off.

Laika’s heart beat rose to about 204 beats per minute during acceleration. It settled back down to 102 after they had left the atmosphere. Laika was intended to survive 10 days in space. The food she would eat on the 10th day was poisoned, but she didn’t get that far. The “Block A” core did not separate as planned, preventing the thermal control system from operating correctly. And on top of that, some of the thermal insulation tore loose raising the cabin temperature to 40C (104F). And because of that, Laika passed away from stress and hypothermia 5-7 hours into the flight.

Laika’s story is tragic, and I cry every time I think about it. She didn’t want to go to space. All she wanted was a nice, cosy home with kids she could play with, and people who would love her every second of her life. I like to think that Sputnik 2 was abducted by aliens and the reason she showed no more signs of life was because the aliens performed a surgery to remove everything that the scientists had implanted in her. And that she lived out the rest of her life with them. I know it sounds silly, but it makes me happy thinking about her having a real home with people who would love her. And I know this is unrelated, but when I’m older, I plan on getting a Jack Russell Terrier or some kind of mix that looks similar to her, and naming her Laika.

I also just wanted to say that I’m very sorry if I have misinformation, or have typed things out of order, or anything like that. I tried my best to research things but having a school computer that blocks a lot of websites makes it hard. So I apologize if there's anything that’s not true, or if anything is out of order.

Thank you to,
LAIKA DIES IN SPACE
Wikipedia

RIP Little Curly girl