A letter await'd me at home yesterday.... one of those quaint throw backs to a more polite era when we people use pen, ink, paper and postage stamps to correspond with each other. I still carry on in this fashion with some old friends; many now scattered to the far corners of the world.
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This letter came from my old college room mate; from my days in the UK. Although we haven't seen each other in years, we regularly correspond by 'snail mail' -- have for years and years.
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Anita (not her name) lives in Moscow (close enuff.) She's an engineer that designs space stuff. In her letter she remind'd me that this is the anniversary of a number of space-related events that should not go unobserved.
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like--
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My father and his father (SK) have both regaled me as a girl with their tales of 60 years ago when they tuned in to the first Sputnik satellite. It operated on a frequency near 20Mhz- the 15 metre band- They told me that the first time they heard it they knew the world would never be the same. Somewhere I have a small 3" reel of tape- a recording of the audio. That was in October of 1957..... And they were right; it changed the world.
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In my memory- and maybe in yours- was the November 1997 launch of Spuknik 40. It operated for about 2 months, commemorating the first Sputnik. I easily tuned it in on 145.82... 20 years ago ..... a strong "beep...beep...beep" just like its predecessor.
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But my letter from Anita barely touch those two satellites. She, instead, dwelt upon one of the darker Soviet space missions-- Sputnik 2- one of those project we both have discussed many times, over the years- and shed a quiet tear over.
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Unfamiliar with it?
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This Soviet mission was the one that on November 3rd, 1957 launch Laika, a small, cute, and friendly dog into space. She was sent on a mission she was never intende'd to survive. As dog lovers, Anita and I both, get choke'd up over what happen'd to her.
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So while many (or, well, perhaps just a few) mark the 60th anniversary of Spuknik 1, of the 20th of number 40... a week or so from now I'll hold a few special moments of observance at my agency to remember Laika, the little Space Dog.
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....................CF
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Laika- " The little barker" ca.1954- 3 November 1957
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"Xорошая прекрасная сладкая принцесса и полет ангелов, чтобы спеть тебя к слав"
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("Good nite sweet princess and a flight of angels to sing thee to thy glory')--- Hamlet
.
.
.
This letter came from my old college room mate; from my days in the UK. Although we haven't seen each other in years, we regularly correspond by 'snail mail' -- have for years and years.
.
Anita (not her name) lives in Moscow (close enuff.) She's an engineer that designs space stuff. In her letter she remind'd me that this is the anniversary of a number of space-related events that should not go unobserved.
.
like--
.
.
My father and his father (SK) have both regaled me as a girl with their tales of 60 years ago when they tuned in to the first Sputnik satellite. It operated on a frequency near 20Mhz- the 15 metre band- They told me that the first time they heard it they knew the world would never be the same. Somewhere I have a small 3" reel of tape- a recording of the audio. That was in October of 1957..... And they were right; it changed the world.
.
In my memory- and maybe in yours- was the November 1997 launch of Spuknik 40. It operated for about 2 months, commemorating the first Sputnik. I easily tuned it in on 145.82... 20 years ago ..... a strong "beep...beep...beep" just like its predecessor.
.
.
But my letter from Anita barely touch those two satellites. She, instead, dwelt upon one of the darker Soviet space missions-- Sputnik 2- one of those project we both have discussed many times, over the years- and shed a quiet tear over.
.
Unfamiliar with it?
.
This Soviet mission was the one that on November 3rd, 1957 launch Laika, a small, cute, and friendly dog into space. She was sent on a mission she was never intende'd to survive. As dog lovers, Anita and I both, get choke'd up over what happen'd to her.
.
So while many (or, well, perhaps just a few) mark the 60th anniversary of Spuknik 1, of the 20th of number 40... a week or so from now I'll hold a few special moments of observance at my agency to remember Laika, the little Space Dog.
.
.
....................CF
.
.
Laika- " The little barker" ca.1954- 3 November 1957
.
"Xорошая прекрасная сладкая принцесса и полет ангелов, чтобы спеть тебя к слав"
.
("Good nite sweet princess and a flight of angels to sing thee to thy glory')--- Hamlet
.
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