Silvery Clouds

The legend of the Tunguska meteorite is many. One of them appeared recently: “As it has become known today, the chief designer of spacecraft Sergey Korolev was the organizer of a helicopter expedition to the area of the Podkamennaya Tunguska.”

What if a piece of an alien spaceship is found? How could it be useful for designing Soviet rockets…"

Strange: neither Sergey Pavlovich himself nor his friends and colleagues ever mentioned searches for this meteorite. And although the outstanding scientist was a great dreamer and often talked to cosmonauts about future flights into space, about new ships and orbital stations, nevertheless, he wasn’t interested in legends about visitors from other worlds. So there was no “helicopter expedition,” was there?

Probably that’s what one would have to say—if… such an expedition really hadn’t happened. But in the winter of 1960, it did take place.

Korolev was dark and angry. The second day passed after the rocket launch, and nothing was known about the fate of the container. Minutes earlier, when telemetry specialists tried to prove to him—unfortunately, “there’s not enough information and it’s contradictory”—he pointed at the telegram and read: “The rocket’s flight became uncontrollable. Because of this, the container with the test animal fell somewhere beyond the Yenisei.”

“Say thanks that people believe us,” Korolev said. “They understand we have a tough job. But if we keep working like this, how will we look people in the face? And?.. Go on.”

The telemetry specialists gathered silently by the door. The department head wanted to stay to say something, but noticing that ESP (P.S.) wasn’t looking at them and was busy with paperwork, he decided to come back later—when the Chief’s mood improved.

Korolev was terribly tired these days. He had to explain things, justify, prove that in their field, working isn’t as easy and smooth as they’d like. He couldn’t yet say anything about the reasons for the equipment’s failure. Today he received a telegram from London. A TASS correspondent reported that newspapers had published a protest by the Society for the Protection of Animals. Apparently, these dog lovers were very worried about Mushka and Pchelochka, who “the Russians sent to their certain death” in December—

As if those ladies and gentlemen with hearts, and he, Korolev, were a cruel man sending puppies to their deaths.