Buzz
Before Apollo 11 brought U.S. astronauts to the moon in 1969, many missions came before it. The space race was a fierce rivalry, driven by both sides—intensified by the Cold War—eager to explore missile capabilities through space exploration. While the U.S. made history by landing a man on the moon, the Soviets were the first to send a living creature into orbit and to launch a human into space, achieving this milestone in 1961.
However, before humans could sit in rockets, various animals were tasked with taking the lead. The U.S. selected chimpanzees for their close genetic resemblance to humans, whereas the Soviets chose dogs. Over a span of 15 years, 36 dogs were part of space missions, many of whom tragically lost their lives or faded into obscurity. These are 10 of their remarkable stories.
10. Dezik, Tsygan, and Lisa
In the 1950s, neither the Soviets nor the U.S. space programs knew if life could even survive in space, nor could they be sure that launching something into orbit and bringing it back safely was feasible.
By the early 1950s, the Soviets were scrambling to catch up. In 1948, three years before the Russians began testing live animals, their American counterparts succeeded in launching a rhesus monkey named Albert into sub-orbital space, followed by three other monkeys and a mouse—none of whom survived.
Dezik and Tsygan were chosen as the first Soviet space dogs, reaching an altitude of 68 miles on August 15, 1951—one month ahead of the American monkey Yorick. They returned safely. Building on this success, the Soviets sent Dezik on a second mission, this time with a dog named Lisa. Unfortunately, this flight ended in tragedy, with both dogs perishing when the module crashed. To prevent losing the first space dogs, Tsygan was quickly retired and adopted by a Soviet physicist.
9. Bolik and ZIB
All the dogs selected by the Soviets were stray animals, typically picked up from the streets of Moscow and housed in a facility where they were trained and prepped for missions. For every dog that actually participated in a mission, there were many others that either perished during training, escaped, were kept as backups for Earth-based control groups during missions, or simply weren’t deemed suitable.
Though the training regimen varied depending on the specific mission, the dogs were generally placed on centrifuges to simulate high-speed acceleration. They were also confined to progressively smaller cages to prepare them for the cramped, still environment of space travel.
The situation proved too much for Bolik, who, just a month after the Dezik and Lisa mission ended in disaster, ran away just days before his scheduled flight. The spacecraft and equipment had been specifically designed around Bolik’s size and weight, and no other dog could be substituted. Fortunately for the Soviets, a stray dog was found outside their compound. Though untrained, she had the perfect dimensions and was named ZIB, which stands for 'replacement for missing Bolik' in Russian. Thankfully, the mission was a success, and the unsuspecting ZIB returned safely.
8. Laika
On November 3, 1957, a significant achievement was made when the Soviet spacecraft Sputnik 2 was launched into space. This launch was strategically planned to coincide with the 40th anniversary of the Russian Revolution, which added immense pressure and tight deadlines. And onboard the spacecraft was the unfortunate Laika.
Due to the tight deadlines set by the Soviet Premier, the flight had no provision for a return, and everyone knew from the outset that Laika (whose name translates to 'Barker') would not return. The plan was to have her orbit the planet several times before crashing back to Earth, with Laika expected to run out of oxygen after seven days and die peacefully.
For a period, this was the official story of her fate, but it is now known that Laika actually perished just hours into the mission when the temperatures inside the spacecraft soared to dangerous levels during launch. A tragic and cruel way to die, but Laika became a hero as the first living creature to orbit the Earth. Her legacy endures and she is honored in various monuments, including those at the Cosmonaut Space Museum in Moscow, as well as in popular culture worldwide.
7. Bars and Lisichka
Building on the success of the Laika mission (from a technical standpoint), the Soviet spaceflight team still felt a deep sense of remorse over the dog’s tragic fate. No previous mission had been as much of a suicide mission as Laika’s had been. To prevent a similar tragedy, the team improved the capsule to ensure it could return from orbit, guaranteeing that nothing like this would happen again.
Bars and Lisichka were chosen for a test mission that launched in the summer of 1960. Lisichka, in particular, was a favorite of Sergei Korolev—the lead rocket engineer and spacecraft designer for the Soviets. However, despite all the preparation, training, and craft design, the mission ended in the quickest failure of the spaceflight program. Just 28 seconds into launch, the capsule exploded, killing both dogs. Clearly, much more work was still needed.
6. Belka and Strelka
Three years later, the Soviet spaceflight team found itself once again racing through the streets of Moscow, seeking new candidates for their next mission. This time, the goal was to send living organisms into orbit and ensure they returned alive.
The chosen dogs were Belka and Strelka (‘Whitey’ and ‘Little Arrow’), who, along with 40 mice, 2 rats, a rabbit, and various fruit flies and plants, boarded Sputnik 5. On August 19, 1960, the mission launched without issue. After 17 successful orbits, they returned to Earth safely, becoming the first living creatures to orbit and return unharmed. Their success was reported globally, and both dogs retired, never flying again. As a major propaganda victory, Soviet Premier Krushchev gifted a puppy of Strelka to American First Lady Jackie Kennedy during the height of the Cold War. This puppy went on to have offspring with an American dog, marking a true Cold War romance.
5. Pchelka and Mushka
During the space race, both sides kept advancements, goals, and technology under wraps to prevent the enemy from gaining the upper hand or profiting from their progress. This secrecy was evident in the mission of Pchelka (‘Little Bee’) and Mushka (‘Little Fly’), which launched in December 1960. It was Pchelka’s first mission, though Mushka had played a significant role in Laika’s flight three years prior, serving as her control group on Earth.
After a successful launch and a day in orbit, disaster struck during reentry when the rockets failed to shut off as planned, causing the capsule to veer off course. Fearing the capsule might fall into foreign hands, the Soviet spaceflight team made the decision to self-destruct the capsule, killing both dogs. While they were happy to share their successes with the world, secrecy remained their top priority.
4. Shutka and Kometka
The very next flight ended in failure. Launched on December 22, 1960, the dogs Shutka and Kometka (‘Joke’ and ‘Little Comet’) were supposed to complete an orbital mission but only reached 133 miles before the upper stage rocket malfunctioned. Two ejection seats were prepared for an emergency, but they failed to deploy, trapping the dogs inside. The crew attempted to self-destruct the capsule, but this also failed, forcing them to rush to the craft.
The capsule crashed 2,175 miles from its launch site, still within Soviet territory, and came to rest in a snowdrift at temperatures of -42°C (-45°F). The crew couldn't disarm the backup self-destruct system because of the freezing temperatures and the diminishing light, so they had no choice but to wait until morning. The capsule's glass was frosted over, and no signs of life were detected from inside. But as the sun rose, the crew heard the dogs barking and successfully disarmed the mechanism, rescuing the dogs from the module. Amazingly, they were unharmed, though in shock.
Both dogs fully recovered, but the Soviets prohibited Korolev from publicly sharing the story of their miraculous survival, and so the dogs were largely forgotten. Fortunately, they were retired, and Kometka was adopted as a pet by Oleg Gazenko, a leading scientist responsible for selecting many of the dogs for these missions. Kometka went on to live a long, well-deserved, and much more peaceful life.
3. Veterok and Ugolyok
For many, Gagarin’s flight symbolized the conclusion of the space race. The Soviets had triumphed at every significant milestone. However, in the USA, President Kennedy quickly shifted the goal, setting his country’s sights on landing on the moon. Not wanting to be outdone in this propaganda battle, the new space race was born. But this challenge would demand more time in space than any of the Soviets’ previous missions.
At that time, the record for the longest continuous space mission was just five days, a duration far too short for a moon mission. Thus, in 1966, Veterok and Ugolyok were chosen for what would be the final dog-spaceflight mission. They were launched aboard a new spacecraft and spent a record 21 days in orbit before safely returning to Earth. The dogs were celebrated on television for their achievement and went on to enjoy long, uneventful lives. Ugolyok had six puppies, and Veterok befriended a scientist from the spaceflight team and lived to an old age.
2. Zvezdochka
The final test flight before Yuri Gagarin’s scheduled mission was one of the most crucial tests the Soviet team had undertaken. A failure at this stage would mean either a delay or disaster for Gagarin’s launch. After the Chernushka mission, the team required one final success to ensure everything was safe enough for Gagarin to proceed.
The dog chosen for this mission underwent the usual training, but there was one problem: its name. Initially called Udacha, which means 'luck,' Yuri Gagarin insisted on changing it. Known for his superstitions, Gagarin had many rituals that continue to be practiced by Russian cosmonauts today. The team agreed to his request and allowed him to rename the dog Zvezdochka, meaning 'Starlet' or 'Little Star.' Whether or not this superstition had any bearing, the mission was successful, and the dog returned unharmed to Earth.
1. Chernushka
To double the research, the Soviets often used two dogs in their missions. However, with advancements in technology and understanding, they decided to send just one dog on this particular mission—a subtle indication that their focus was shifting. Behind the scenes, officials were already looking ahead to the first human spaceflight, though more testing was required.
After testing equipment, technology, and the effects of space on small animals in tiny capsules, the next question was whether a spacecraft large enough to accommodate a human could produce the same results. While test dummies were used to gather data, the necessity of sending a living being into space meant the dog missions weren’t over. Chernushka ('Blackie') completed one orbit in March 1961 and returned safely. This marked the first flight of its kind, a success that fueled preparations for the first human flight the following month.
