Hats off to Laika: intrepid space explorer and science subject, dutiful citizen to the motherland, first mammal in space. That’s a pretty long way for a stray mutt to come.

50 years later, Russia is commemorating the pioneering pooch with a statue in her honor at a military research unit near Moscow.

Scientific American takes a look at just how strange the colors of plants on other planets could be.Plants need solar energy to make their food, and on earth our plants use green chlorophyll. But other planets receive different kinds of solar radiation, giving their plants different odd hues.

And if that explanation doesn’t satisfy you, try this excerpt from the science news article:

Light of any color from deep violet through the near-infrared could power photosynthesis. Around stars hotter and bluer than our sun, plants would tend to absorb blue light and could look green to yellow to red. Around cooler stars such as red dwarfs, planets receive less visible light, so plants might try to absorb as much of it as possible, making them look black.

Better?

Dont forget to check out the cool slideshow. Click here.