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Remember the race to the Moon? You probably think of brave astronauts like Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin. But did you know that tortoises actually beat humans to lunar orbit? It's true! Months before Apollo 8 carried humans around the Moon, two Russian tortoises, along with a tiny crew of other creatures, had already made the trip and returned home safe and sound.
This incredible journey was part of the USSR's Zond 5 mission, launched in September 1968. While they didn't get to walk on the Moon, these pioneering reptiles were the first Earthlings to ever circle our celestial neighbor and return to tell the tale (or at least, not be turned into soup, which was, sadly, the fate that awaited them back on Earth).
The Mighty Proton Rocket: A Unique Design
The Zond 5 mission wouldn't have been possible without a powerful rocket, and the Soviets relied on the impressive Proton rocket. This rocket had a very distinctive design, especially for its time. Instead of having separate booster rockets, the Proton's first stage featured a large central fuel tank surrounded by several smaller tanks containing fuel and oxidizer. This unusual layout was necessary because the Proton was designed to be transported by train, limiting its width.
The Fuel That Fueled Controversy
The Proton rocket used a special type of fuel called Unsymmetrical dimethylhydrazine, or UDMH. While effective, UDMH is also highly toxic, which caused concern among some scientists. However, it had some significant advantages:
- Hypergolic Ignition: UDMH ignites spontaneously when mixed with its oxidizer, simplifying the rocket's engine design and reducing the risk of ignition failures.
- Room Temperature Storage: Unlike other rocket fuels that need to be kept extremely cold, UDMH can be stored at room temperature, making it easier to handle and transport.
Tortoises: The Perfect Space Travelers?
You might be wondering why tortoises were chosen for this groundbreaking mission. The answer is surprisingly simple: they were easy to secure for the journey. The tortoises were placed in small containers that restricted their movement, preventing them from floating around in the weightlessness of space.
While this might sound a bit cramped, it was a necessary precaution for the experiment. Scientists wanted to study the effects of spaceflight on living organisms, and keeping the tortoises immobile helped isolate those effects from the influence of microgravity.
A Diverse Crew of Tiny Explorers
The Zond 5 mission wasn't just about tortoises. The spacecraft also carried a diverse group of other passengers, including:
- Fruit fly eggs
- Mealworms
- Seeds
- Bacteria
- Even human cells!
This menagerie of life forms allowed scientists to study how different organisms reacted to the harsh conditions of space travel.
A Safe Return and a Scientific Legacy
After their historic journey, the Zond 5 tortoises returned to Earth relatively healthy, although they had lost some weight. Their successful flight paved the way for future animal and human missions into space, including the Apollo missions that would soon land humans on the Moon.
The Zond 5 mission, with its intrepid tortoise crew, remains a testament to the spirit of scientific exploration and the incredible things we can achieve when we dare to reach for the stars. So the next time you see a tortoise, remember that these seemingly slow and steady creatures were pioneers in the race to space!
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