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Table of Contents
Before human spaceflights became a reality, animals were used to assess the effects of space travel and study various biological processes in space. The bioastronautics field emerged, focusing on understanding and maintaining life in the universe. Several countries, including the United States, the Soviet Union, France, Argentina, China, Japan, and Iran, have sent animals into space.
See the fact file below for more information on Animals in Space, or you can download our 33-page Animals in Space worksheet pack to utilize within the classroom or home environment.
Key Facts & Information
OVERVIEW
- Since 1783, when the Montgolfier brothers flew a sheep, a duck, and a rooster up in a to investigate if ground-dwelling animals could survive (the duck served as the experimental control), animals have been utilized in aeronautic exploration.
- Due to a scarcity of seized German V-2 rockets, the United States relied on high-altitude balloon launches to transport fruit flies, mice, hamsters, guinea pigs, cats, dogs, frogs, goldfish, and primates to altitudes of up to 44,000 m (144,000 ft; 27 km).
- From 1947 through 1960, these high-altitude balloon flights studied radiation exposure, physiological response, life support, and recovery technologies.
- The high-altitude human balloon flights in the United States took place around the same period, and one also contained fruit flies.
TIMELINE
1940s
- On 20 February 1947, fruit flies were sent into space on a V-2 rocket launched by the United States from White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico.
- The goal of the experiment was to investigate the effects of radiation exposure at high altitudes.
- The rocket traveled 109 kilometers (68 miles) in 3 minutes and 10 seconds, surpassing both the U.S. Air Force’s 80 km (50 mi) and the international 100 km definitions of the space border.
- The Blossom capsule was ejected and its parachute was successfully deployed. The fruit flies were found alive and well. Other V-2 missions transported biological samples, such as moss.
- Following the failure of the original Albert’s mission on the ascent, Albert II, a rhesus monkey, became the first monkey, primate, and animal in space on 14 June 1949 in a US-launched V-2.
- Albert I only reached 48-63 km (30-39 mi) altitude, but Albert II reached 134 km (83 mi). Albert II was killed on impact after his parachute failed.
- Several types of monkeys were flown by the U.S. in the 1950s and 1960s. Monkeys were implanted with sensors to monitor vital signs, and many were sedated for the launch.
- The fatality rate among these monkeys was quite high; almost two-thirds of all monkeys launched in the 1940s and 1950s died during missions or shortly after landing.
1950s
In the 1950s, both the United States and the Soviet Union conducted numerous animal flights to explore the effects of space travel. On August 31, 1950, the U.S. sent a mouse into space, but it perished upon descent due to a parachute failure.
- On July 22, 1951, the Soviet Union launched the R-1 IIIA-1 flight, which had two dogs named Tsygan and Dezik and became the first higher creatures to survive spaceflight.
- In November 1957, the Soviet Union launched Sputnik 2 with the dog Laika, who unfortunately did not survive the journey.
- On December 13, 1958, the U.S. launched a Jupiter IRBM with a squirrel monkey named Gordo, who survived the launch and reentry but was lost when the recovery parachute failed.
- In 1959, two monkeys named Miss Able and Miss Baker became the first to survive spaceflight after their journey on Jupiter IRBM AM-18.
- Able died a few days later due to medical complications, while Baker was monitored for any negative consequences and became a well-known figure.
- The Soviet Union also sent space dogs and the first rabbit, Marfusha, into space on July 2, 1959. However, Jupiter AM-23, launched in September 1959 carrying frogs and mice, was destroyed during launch.
- On December 4, 1959, Sam, a rhesus macaque, flew on Project Mercury’s Little Joe 2 mission and reached an altitude of 85 km (53 mi).
1960s
During the 1960s, several countries conducted missions to send animals into space to study their ability to survive in space conditions. The Soviet Union and the United States were the primary participants in these endeavors.
- Sputnik 5 was launched by the Soviet Union in 1960, carrying two dogs named Belka and Strelka, a rabbit, mice, rats, fruit flies, and plants.
- This mission marked the first time animals were sent into orbit and successfully brought back alive. One of Strelka’s puppies, Pushinka, was later given as a gift to Caroline Kennedy.
- In the same year, the United States launched three black mice named Sally, Amy, and Moe into space. They were found to be in good health after being rescued from a nose cone on Ascension Island.
- In 1961, a chimpanzee named Ham became the first great ape in space. He was taught to perform tasks and demonstrated the ability to complete them while in space.
- Shortly after, Alan Shepard became the first American to be launched into space.
- The Soviet Union continued its animal space missions by sending a dog named Chernushka, along with mice, frogs, and a guinea pig, aboard the Korabl-Sputnik 4 in 1961. All the animals were successfully retrieved.
- France joined the animal space race by sending a rat named Hector into space in 1961, followed by two more in 1962.
- In 1963, they launched a cat, Félicette, who survived the flight and provided valuable neurological data before being euthanized for further analysis.
- China also conducted animal space missions, sending mice in 1964, rats in 1965, and two dogs in 1966.
- Under the Voskhod program in 1966, two Soviet dogs named Veterok and Ugolyok traveled 22 days in space, breaking the record for the longest canine space voyage. Humans did not break this record until 1971.
- Various other countries, including Argentina, also conducted animal space missions.
- Argentina launched a rat named Belisario in 1967, followed by a series of rat-powered flights. The Soviet Union sent the first animals on a circumlunar mission to the Moon in 1968, including tortoises and other biological specimens.
- In 1969, the United States launched a macaque monkey named Bonny aboard Biosatellite 3, but unfortunately, the monkey’s health deteriorated, and it died shortly after returning to Earth.
1970s
On November 9, 1970, two bullfrogs were launched on a one-way journey on the Orbiting Frog Otolith satellite to learn more about space motion sickness.
- Nematodes were aboard Apollo 16, which launched on April 16, 1972. Apollo 17, which launched on December 7, 1972, had five pocket mice named Fe, Fi, Fo, Fum, and Phooey, who stayed in the control module with astronaut Ronald Evans for six days while it circled the Moon. One of the mice perished on the journey.
- Skylab 3 (1973) contained pocket mice, the first fish in space (a mummichog), and the first spiders (garden spiders Arabella and Anita). Mummichogs were also sent by the United States on the Apollo-Soyuz joint mission, launching on July 15, 1975.
- The Soviets flew many Bion program missions with satellites carrying biological payloads.
- Tortoises, rats, and mummichogs were included in these launches. Tortoises established the record for an animal in orbit when they spent 90.5 days in space on Soyuz 20, which launched on November 17, 1975. On June 22, 1976, Salyut 5 transported tortoises and a fish (a zebra danio).
1980s
In the 1980s, the Soviet Union sent eight monkeys into space on Bion missions. Bion flights also carried zebra danio, fruit flies, rats, stick insect eggs, and the first space newts.
- In 1985 the United States sent two squirrel monkeys onboard Spacelab 3 on the Space Shuttle along with 24 male albino rats and stick insect eggs.
- Bion 7 (1985) carried ten newts (Pleurodeles waltl).
- The newts had a portion of their front limbs cut in order to evaluate the rate of regeneration in space, which will help researchers comprehend human recovery from space injuries.
- Following the loss of an experiment in the orbit Shuttle Challenger accident, chicken embryos (fertilized eggs) were sent into orbit on STS-29 in 1989. The experiment was created for a student competition.
1990s
- The Soviet Union’s final Bion missions carried four monkeys, as well as frogs and fruit flies. Newts, dormant brine shrimp (Artemia franciscana), sand desert beetles (Trigonoscelis gigas), and fruit flies, were also transported on Foton program flights.
- Guinea pigs were first introduced in China in 1990.
- Toyohiro Akiyama, a Japanese journalist, sent Japanese tree frogs to the Mir space station in December 1990. Quail eggs were used in other biological investigations on Mir.
- On March 18, 1995, Japan sent its first creatures into space aboard the Space Flyer Unit, a type of newt.
- Crickets, mice, rats, frogs and newts, fruit flies, gypsy moth eggs, snails, carp, medaka (rice fish), oyster toadfish, sea urchins, swordtail fish, brine shrimp (Artemia salina), stick insect eggs, quail eggs, and jellyfish were all transported aboard Space Shuttles throughout the 1990s.
2000s
During its final voyage in 2003, the Space Shuttle Columbia transported a range of organisms, such as silkworms, garden orb spiders, carpenter bees, harvester ants, and Japanese killifish.
- Fortunately, following the tragic accident, nematodes (Caenorhabditis elegans) from one of the experiments were found alive amidst the wreckage.
- C. elegans, a type of roundworm, has been used in experiments conducted aboard the International Space Station and also in studies involving quail eggs.
- Previous Space Shuttle missions involved projects from students at different educational levels, including ants, stick insect eggs, brine shrimp cysts, and a collection of gypsy moth eggs.
- In 2006, Bigelow Aerospace launched the Genesis I inflatable space module, which included various objects like toys and basic experiments.
- This may have been the first private mission to send creatures into space.
- Insects, such as Madagascar hissing cockroaches and Mexican jumping beans containing live moth larvae, were among the species included.
- Genesis II, a similar module, was launched in 2007, carrying Madagascar hissing cockroaches, South African flat rock scorpions, and seed-harvester ants.
- During the European Space Agency’s FOTON-M3 mission in 2007, tardigrades, also known as water bears, were able to survive in open space for 10 days using their natural protection.
- On the same mission, a sealed container carrying cockroaches had at least one female conceive during the voyage.
- When the cockroaches returned to Earth, one of them, Nadezhda, became the very first Earth species to give birth in space.
- During the countdown for the STS-119 mission in 2009, a free-tailed bat was discovered clinging to the Space Shuttle’s fuel tank. Unfortunately, it had a broken wing and likely had other injuries, and it probably died during the shuttle’s ascent.
- In November 2009, the STS-129 mission carried painted lady and monarch butterfly larvae into orbit for a school project. Thousands of C. elegans roundworms were also included in the mission for long-term weight reduction research.
2010s
In May 2011, the Space Shuttle Endeavour STS-134 mission carried two golden orb spiders, Gladys and Esmeralda, and a fruit fly colony to examine spider behavior in microgravity. Tardigrades and extremophiles were also sent into space.
- The Fobos-Grunt mission in November 2011 aimed to transport tardigrades to Mars and back but failed to leave Earth orbit.
- In October 2012, the Soyuz TMA-06M mission carried 32 medaka fish to the International Space Station for research in the Aquatic Habitat on the Kibo module.
- On January 28, 2013, Iran launched a monkey named Pishgam into space using a rocket. They released an 18-minute video showing the launch and collection of the “shipment.”
- On February 3, 2013, Iran launched a mouse, two turtles, and several worms aboard the Kavoshgar 3 rocket, and they successfully returned to Earth.
- In January 2014, the hunting techniques of pavement ants were studied aboard the International Space Station.
- Russia launched the Foton-M4 satellite in July 2014, carrying five geckos to study the effects of microgravity on reptile reproductive behavior. Russia lost control of the satellite but regained communication, and it was later confirmed that the geckos died, likely freezing to death.
- In September 2014, the SpaceX CRS-4 mission transported 20 mice to the International Space Station to study the long-term effects of microgravity on rodents.
- In April 2015, the SpaceX CRS-6 mission sent 20 mice to the International Space Station to investigate muscle loss in microgravity.
- The Rodent Research 3 mission in April 2016 carried 20 mice to study myostatin inhibition for the prevention of skeletal and muscular atrophy.
- On June 29, 2018, a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft launched with 20 mice aboard for a record-breaking mission to study the effects of space on their physiology and sleep habits.
2020s
On June 3, 2021, SpaceX CRS-22 sent Hawaiian bobtail squid and tardigrades (water bears) to the International Space Station. The squid was sent as hatchlings, and their ability to assimilate their symbiotic bacteria into their light organ while in orbit will be researched.
WHY ARE ANIMALS SENT INTO SPACE?
- Biomedical Research: Animals are used to study the physiological and biological effects of space travel on living organisms. These studies help scientists understand the impact of microgravity, radiation, and other space-related factors on the body systems of animals, which can provide insights into human health in space.
- Life Support Systems: Animals are used to test and develop life support systems in space.
- By studying how animals adapt to the space environment, researchers can improve life support technologies and ensure the well-being of astronauts during long-duration space missions.
- Behavioral Studies: Animals can be used to observe and understand their behavior in microgravity conditions.
- This research helps scientists understand the effects of space travel on the behavior, cognition, and mental well-being of living organisms.
- Spacecraft Engineering: Animals are sometimes used to test the safety and functionality of spacecraft components and systems. By subjecting animals to space conditions, engineers can assess the reliability and performance of various equipment and make necessary improvements.
- Astrobiology and Life in Extreme Environments: Animals like tardigrades (water bears) and extremophiles have been sent into space to study their ability to survive in extreme conditions. This research contributes to our understanding of the potential for life to exist in extreme environments, including other planets and moons.
Animals in Space Worksheets
This fantastic bundle includes everything you need to know about Animals in Space across 33 in-depth pages. These ready-to-use worksheets are perfect for teaching kids about Animals in Space. Before human spaceflights became a reality, animals were used to assess the effects of space travel and study various biological processes in space.
Complete List of Included Worksheets
Below is a list of all the worksheets included in this document.
- Animals in Space Facts
- Time Track
- The Impostor
- FAQs
- Define It!
- Space Dogs
- Alice King Chatham
- Write It Down
- Watch and Write
- Raise Awareness
- On Cam
Frequently Asked Questions
Have animals been sent to space?
Yes, animals have been sent to space in various missions. During the early years of space exploration, animals such as fruit flies, mice, monkeys, and dogs were used to study the physiological and psychological effects of space travel on living organisms.
Which animals were the first to go to space?
The first animals to go to space were fruit flies. They were sent aboard U.S. V-2 rockets in the late 1940s by the U.S. Air Force to study the effects of high-altitude conditions on living organisms. Later, in 1947, a rhesus monkey named Albert I became the first primate to be sent to the edge of space.
What animals have been sent on manned space missions?
Several animals have been sent on manned space missions. For example, the Soviet Union sent dogs named Laika, Belka, and Strelka on space missions in the 1950s and 1960s. These dogs played a crucial role in understanding the effects of space travel on living organisms before humans ventured into space.
How did animals fare in space missions?
The conditions experienced by animals in early space missions were challenging and often fatal. Many of the animals sent to space did not survive the missions. For example, Laika, the first dog to orbit Earth, unfortunately perished due to a combination of stress, heat, and lack of oxygen. However, the knowledge gained from these early missions was essential in ensuring the safety of human astronauts in subsequent space exploration.
Are animals still used in space exploration?
The use of animals in space exploration has significantly decreased since the early days. Ethical considerations and advancements in technology have led to a shift towards using sophisticated robotic probes and sensors for space exploration. However, animals are still occasionally used in scientific research on Earth to study the physiological effects of microgravity and simulate conditions experienced by astronauts in space. These studies help scientists better understand the potential impacts of long-duration space travel on the human body.
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