![[ America in Space ]](images/heada.gif)
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Primate Flights
Mission # |
Date |
Occupant |
Comments |
| V-2 Number 37 | 11 Jun 1948 | Albert (monkey) | Died on impact |
| V-2 Number 47 | 14 Jun 1949 | Albert II (monkey) | Died on impact |
| V-2 Number 32 | 16 Sep 1949 | Albert III (monkey) | Died on impact |
| V-2 Number 31 | 8 Dec 1949 | Albert IV (monkey) | Died on impact |
| Aerobee USAF-12 | 18 Apr 1951 | unnamed monkey | Died on impact |
| Aerobee USAF-19 | 20 Sep 1951 | Yorick (monkey) | Survived, but died from heat exhaustion a few hours later |
| Aerobee USAF-26 | 22 May 1952 | Patricia and Mike (monkeys) | |
| AM-13 Bioflight 1 | 13 Dec 1958 | Gordo (monkey, aka Little Old Reliable) | Sub-orbital, lost at sea |
| AM-18 Bioflight 2 | 28 May 1959 | Able and Baker (monkeys) | Sub-orbital |
| LJ-2 | 4 Dec 1959 | Sam (a monkey) | 53 miles |
| LJ-1B | 21 Jan 1960 | Miss Sam (a monkey) | 9 miles |
| MR-2 | 31 Jan 1961 | Ham the Chimp | Sub-orbital |
| SP Pod 13 | 10 Nov 1961 | Goliath (monkey) | Atlas blew up |
| MA-5 | 29 Nov 1961 | Enos the Chimp | 2 Orbits |
| SP Pod 6 | 10 Dec 1961 | Scatback (monkey) | Sub-orbital, lost at sea |
| Biosatellite 3 | 29 Jun - 8 Jul 1969 | Bonny (monkey) | Orbital, became sick, died few hours after landing |
| Bion 6/Kosmos 1514 | 14 Dec 1983 | Abrek and Bion (monkeys) | Soviet life science satellite 5 day flight |
| Spacelab 3 (STS-51B) | 29 Apr - 6 May 1985 | No. 3165 and No. 384-80 (monkeys) | |
| Bion 7/Kosmos 1667 | 10 Jul 1985 | Verny (Faithful) and Gordy (Proud) (monkeys) | Soviet life science satellite 7 day flight |
| Bion 8/Kosmos 1887 | 29 Sep 1987 | Yerosha (Drowsy) and Dryoma (Shaggy) (monkeys) | Soviet life science satellite 13 day flight |
| Bion 9/Kosmos 2044 | 15 Sep 1989 | Zhakonya and Zabiyaka (Troublemaker) (monkeys) | Soviet life science satellite 14 day flight |
| Bion 10/Kosmos 2229 | 29 Dec 1992 | Krosh (Tiny) and Ivasha (monkeys) | Russian life science satellite 12 day flight |
| Bion 11 | 24 Dec 1996 | Lapik and Multik (Cartoon) (monkeys) | Russian life science satellite 14 day flight Multik died durin post-landing checkup |
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The MR-2 flight of Ham lasted 16 minutes, 39 seconds, and travelled to an altitude of 157 statute miles. A malfunction of the booster caused Ham to experience 15 Gs on reentry instead of the expected 12 Gs. While awaiting pickup, the capsule began to leak and 800 lbs of seawater entered the capsule. Ham was recovered by a helicopter from the USS Donner. NASA personnel tried to get Ham back into his couch for a photo session several days after his flight, but he refused to go near it. Ham was later housed in the Washington National Zoo, then moved to a zoo in North Carolina where he eventually died of an enlarged heart on 17 January 1983. Ham was born in the French Camaroons in July 1957. His name was an acronym for Holloman Aero Med.
The MA-5 flight of Enos lasted 3 hours, 20 minutes, 59 seconds. Recovery was by the USS Stormes which arrived about a hour and 15 minutes after spashdown. Despite a malfunction in the reward system which caused Enos to be punished for correct actions and rewarded for errors, he performed flawlessly. Enos dies from a severe form of dysentery six months after his flight.
The Bion missions were launched by Russia (before 1992, the Soviet Union). Research partners have included (but were not limited to) Canada, China, the European Space Agency, France, Germany, and the United States.
Additional information in the form of videos is available from "ONE SMALL STEP: The Story of the Space Chimps".
