Monkey that went to space
Pro Research Analysisby 
Searched over 200M research papers
Monkeys in Space: A Historical and Scientific Overview
Early Space Missions with Monkeys
First Primate Space Flights: Able and Baker
In the late 1950s, the United States initiated its first space missions involving primates. The first significant flight occurred in December 1958, when a squirrel monkey was launched into space but was not recovered. The subsequent mission in May 1959 was more successful, involving a female rhesus monkey named Able and a squirrel monkey named Baker. Both monkeys were launched and safely recovered, providing valuable data through fourteen telemetered channels and a spaceborne tape recorder .
Pioneering Biomedical Research
The early space missions with monkeys were crucial for understanding the physiological and behavioral effects of space travel on living organisms. These missions laid the groundwork for more advanced biomedical research. For instance, in the 1960s, chimpanzees Ham and Enos were part of NASA's Project Mercury, which preceded human spaceflights by astronauts like Alan Shepard and John Glenn. These early experiments demonstrated the feasibility of using primates to study the impacts of space travel on more complex organisms, including humans.
Advanced Space Missions and Research
Long-Duration Space Flights
In the 1980s and 1990s, more sophisticated experiments were conducted to study the long-term effects of space travel on primates. For example, rhesus monkeys were part of the Bion 11 flight, where their behavior and performance were closely monitored. The monkeys adapted to the space environment at different rates and successfully performed eye-head-hand coordination tasks during the flight. Another significant mission involved rhesus monkeys on the COSMOS 2044 and COSMOS 2229 flights, where their vestibular adaptation to microgravity was studied. These experiments revealed both short-term and long-term changes in otolith-induced eye movements, which are crucial for understanding spatial orientation in microgravity.
Immunological and Thermoregulatory Studies
Further research focused on the immunological and thermoregulatory responses of rhesus monkeys during spaceflight. Studies conducted during the COSMOS 1514 mission showed that the monkeys experienced a reduction in axillary temperature and heart rate, suggesting a decrease in metabolic rate and heat loss during spaceflight. Additionally, experiments on the COSMOS 2229 flight examined the effects of space travel on cytokine production and other immunologic parameters. Results indicated a decrease in interleukin-1 production and interleukin-2 receptor expression, as well as a reduced response of bone marrow cells to granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF).
Conclusion
The use of monkeys in space missions has provided invaluable insights into the physiological and behavioral effects of space travel. From the early flights of Able and Baker to the advanced biomedical research of the COSMOS missions, these experiments have significantly contributed to our understanding of how living organisms adapt to the unique challenges of space. The findings from these studies continue to inform and enhance human space exploration, ensuring safer and more effective missions in the future.
Sources and full results
Most relevant research papers on this topic