Laika, a stray dog from Moscow, became the first animal to orbit Earth aboard Sputnik 2 on 3 November 1957, less than a month after Sputnik 1. She died from overheating within hours of launch, as the spacecraft was never designed to return; her flight showed that a living organism could tolerate launch and weightlessness.
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Laika, a stray dog from Moscow, became the first animal to orbit Earth aboard Sputnik 2 on 3 November 1957, less than a month after Sputnik 1. She died from overheating within hours of launch, as the spacecraft was never designed to return; her flight showed that a living organism could tolerate launch and weightlessness.
The year a living animal was first placed into Earth orbit.
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Permanent ID limitsregistry.com/limits/LR-FIRST-ANIMAL-IN-ORBIT
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Limits Registry. LR-FIRST-ANIMAL-IN-ORBIT. First animal to orbit Earth. 2026.