The article discusses the history of animals in space exploration, starting from the first fruit fly launch in 1947 to the recent sending of mice to the International Space Station in 2018. It mentions various animals that have been sent to space, including monkeys, dogs, cats, tortoises, jellyfish, spiders, and even a cockroach that gave birth in space. The article also highlights the achievements of these animal astronauts, such as the first living thing to orbit the Earth, a dog named Laika, and the first great ape in space, a chimpanzee named Ham. The article concludes by promoting Curiosity Stream, a documentary platform that offers a wide range of educational content, including space-related documentaries.
Here are the key facts extracted from the text:
1. The US launched a craft containing fruit flies 68 miles into the air in 1947 to test the effects of cosmic radiation.
2. In 1948, the US sent up a rhesus macaque named Albert, but he died of suffocation on the way up.
3. Albert II, another rhesus macaque, was launched in 1948 and made it to space alive, but died on impact due to a parachute failure.
4. The US continued to launch more Alberts, with Albert V being the first to survive the flight and recovery in 1951.
5. In 1951, Russia launched two dogs, Siegen and Dizzy, who became the first vertebrates to leave Earth and return alive.
6. In 1957, Russia launched a dog named Laika into orbit, but she did not survive the flight.
7. In 1959, the US launched two monkeys on a Jupiter missile, and they survived the flight and recovery.
8. In 1961, the US sent up a chimpanzee named Ham, who was trained to perform tasks in space.
9. France launched a cat into space in 1963.
10. In 1968, Russia launched two tortoises into deep space, and they survived the flight and recovery.
11. In 1973, Russia launched a group of mummichog fish into space, which adapted to zero-gravity conditions.
12. In 1975, the US sent up a group of newts with severed arms to test their ability to regrow them in space.
13. In the 1980s, NASA considered sending Big Bird to space as a publicity stunt, but the plan was scrapped due to logistical concerns.
14. In 2003, the US sent up a group of invertebrates, including silkworms, spiders, and harvester ants, to space, but the mission ended in failure.
15. In 2003, a group of tardigrades were sent to space and survived exposure to the vacuum of space for 10 days.
16. In 2018, Elon Musk sent a group of mice to the International Space Station.
Note that some of the dates and details may be unclear or humorous due to the tone of the original text.