MONKEY HEROES HALL OF FAME

Hall of Space Monkey Heroes (Marilyn A. Hudson 2008)
For Parents, Teachers, and Librarians

Space research was very dangerous business and the monkey heroes did not always survive. They are special monkey heroes, however, who made it possible for people to actually go into space, go to the moon and, one day, go to other planets. We should remember and honor these very special animal heroes.· 1st U.S. Monkey was Albert. He flew 39 miles in a V-2 rocket in June 1948.· 1st U.S. Monkey to reach space was Albert II. He flew 83 miles, and into space, in June 1949.· 1st living things to successful return from any flight were in 1959: Able, a rhesus monkey and Miss Baker, a Squirrel monkey.· 32 monkeys actually flew in space.· Just as with human astronauts, there were backups. Backup monkeys went through all the training, but never made it into space.