8/3/2023 0 Comments Chimpanzee sent to space![]() Ham's mission paved the way for the successful launch of America's first human astronaut, Alan B. "A post-flight medical examination found Ham to be slightly fatigued and dehydrated, but in good shape otherwise. The mission was one of many planned tests to ensure that humans could survive space flight, think clearly and perform useful functions outside the Earth's atmosphere. He experienced a total of 6.6 minutes of weightlessness. Ham's flight was 16 minutes and 39 seconds long. The only physical injury he suffered from was a bruised nose. Ham's capsule splashed down in the Atlantic Ocean and was recovered by a rescue ship later that day. Scientists found that Ham's lever-pushing performance in space was only a fraction of a second slower than on Earth which demonstrated that tasks could be performed in space. The capsule suffered a partial loss of pressure during the flight, however, Ham's space suit prevented him from suffering any harm. On January 31, 1961, when the MR-2 was launched, Ham's vital signs and tasks were monitored by sensors and computers on Earth. "To condition the chimps to respond properly, they received banana pellets as rewards and mild electrical shocks as punishments," according to NASA History Series 'This New Ocean: A History of Project Mercury'. He was taught to push a lever within five seconds of seeing a flashing blue light. ![]() He was purchased by the US Air Force and brought to Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico in 1959. Ham was born in the French Cameroons, West Africa, in July 1957.
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