[FPSPACE] Two Russian anniversaries

[Paolo Ulivi]

LARRY KLAES wrote:

> On this date in 1960, Belka and Strelka visited space for a day aboard 
> Sputnik 5.
>
> According to this source:
>
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_space_dogs
>
> "They were accompanied by a grey rabbit, 40 mice, 2 rats, flies and a 
> number of plants and fungi. All biological passengers survived. 
> Strelka went on to have six puppies, one of whom named Pushinka, was 
> sent to President John F. Kennedy's children as a present. Pushinka's 
> descendents are still living today. 


On Pushinka I am reposting here part of a post of mine dating August 2003:

[...]
http://www.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/big/0805.html
[...]
The "pupniks" were the sons of Pushinka and the grandsons of Strelka, 
one of the dogs which flew on Korabl'-Sputnik 2 in 1960. Kruschev had 
given Pushinka to Jacqueline Kennedy after the Vienna summit of June 
1961 when she had asked him for one of the pups of Strelka. Khruschev was 
quite happy to have a symbol of the Soviet space lead inside the White 
House itself, more so as Kennedy had lamented during his campaign that 
the first dogs in space were called "Strelka and Belka instead of Rover 
or Fido" (sic!)