Soviet space dogs We did not learn enough from the mission to justify the death of the dog...". Belka (Белка, literally, "Squirrel" or alternatively "Whitey") and Strelka (Стрелка, "Little Arrow") spent a day in space aboard Korabl-Sputnik 2 (Sputnik 5) on 19 August 1960 before safely returning to Earth. They were accompanied by a grey rabbit, 42 mice, two rats, flies and several plants and fungi. All passengers survived. They were the first Earth-born creatures to go into orbit and return alive.Strelka went on to have six puppies with a male dog named Pushok who participated in many ground-based space experiments, but never
Marek Belka of the IMF's European Department, a position Belka took up on 1 November 2008. In this capacity, he led the fund’s response to the global economic crisis in Europe. On 27 May 2010 Belka was nominated as the next President of the National Bank of Poland by Acting President Bronisław Komorowski. On 10 June 2010, he was approved by the Parliament (253 votes in favor; 184 against) as Head of National Bank of Poland. In June 2014, the Polish magazine "Wprost" published a series of transcripts of secret recordings involving senior Polish government officials, including one in which Belka discussed