The mission was a menagerie, not a solo act. Alongside Belka and Strelka, Sputnik 5 (Korabl-Sputnik 2) carried ~42 mice, 2 rats, a rabbit, insects, and plants~ to study the biological effects of spaceflight. Their success on August 19, 1960, was hard-won; a launch attempt the previous July had ended in an explosion that killed dogs Bars and Lisichka. Belka's motion sickness during the fourth orbit was a major finding for future human missions. Afterward, the dogs lived comfortably, and Strelka h