Just a month after propelling the first satellite into space, the Soviet Union had made headlines again with Sputnik 2, which sent the first animal, a dog, into orbit. With two failed launch ...

Once in orbit, Sputnik 1 maintained an orbital speed of approximately eight km/s and completed one orbit every 96.2 minutes.

November 3: Sputnik 2 carries Laika, a female dog, into space. Although the satellite will remain in orbit for 162 days, scientists plan to put Laika to sleep after a week because there is no way ...

In October, the Soviet Union launched the first space satellite, Sputnik I. It was followed in November by the spacecraft Sputnik 2, which carried Laika, the first animal to orbit the Earth. In ...