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Long before man ventured into space, our canine companions were testing the water for us. To assess the then unknown effects of low gravity and forces during launch on living things, Russian scientists made these high-pressure suits to help keep dogs safe during experiments in the 1950s.
They were strapped into what might be considered today as a rather crude contraption, put into a rocket and fired 80km to the edge of space before returning to Earth by parachute. The lessons learned paved the way for Laika's mission in 1957, when she became the first animal to orbit the Earth, and subsequently the first journeys into space by humans a few years later. Unfortunately, only a few suits have remained intact over the years.....
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