In the 1950s, it was unclear whether humans could survive outside Earth – both physically and mentally. The science fiction writer and warfare expert Cordwainer Smith wrote about the psychological pain of being in space.
Plants, insects and animals had been taken to high altitudes in balloons and rockets since the 18th century. The Soviet Union sent the dog Laika into orbit on Sputnik 2 in 1957. She died, but from overheating rather than the effects of space travel itself.
While the USSR focused on dogs, the US turned to chimpanzees as they were the most like humans. The stakes became higher when US President John F. Kennedy promised to land humans on the Moon by the end of the 1960s.
On January 31, 1961, a chimpanzee named Ham made history as the first hominid launched into space. Strapped inside a capsule atop a Mercury-Redstone rocket, Ham completed a 16-minute suborbital flight that paved the way for human spaceflight. Though the mission was a success, Ham’s later life unfolded quietly behind the scenes. After his momentous achievement, what happened to the trailblazing chimp Ham?
Ham’s journey from astrochimp to retired zoo resident was an interesting one. While his spaceflight was undoubtedly the peak of excitement his story didn’t end there.
Training at Chimp College
Ham was born in 1957 in the rainforests of Cameroon, Africa. He was captured and brought to Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico. This facility housed a chimpanzee training program called “Chimp College.”
Here, astrochimps like Ham were conditioned using treats and mild electric shocks. They learned to perform tasks while receiving biomedical monitoring. The most adept chimp would be chosen for the next Mercury spaceflight.
Just a day before the launch, Ham was selected over his classmates. His intelligence and even temperament made him the prime candidate. Ham was now destined for the stars.
Pioneering Suborbital Flight
On January 31, 1961, Ham was inserted into a tiny capsule inside the Mercury spacecraft atop a modified rocket Though just a short suborbital flight, it would be the first test of how a living hominid could function in space
During the 6.6 minute zero-gravity portion, Ham calmly operated a lever as conditioned. The mission splashed down successfully in the Atlantic Ocean after just over 16 total minutes.
Ham had performed brilliantly under intense G-forces, noise and isolation. The first phase of manned spaceflight now seemed achievable. Ham made the cover of LIFE Magazine as a national hero chimp.
Quiet Retirement from the Spotlight
With the Mercury program underway, Ham was no longer needed for training or tests. He was sent to the National Zoo in Washington D.C. to quietly live out his days in retirement.
Away from the spotlight, Ham resided alone in a specially built enclosure. During his 17 years at the National Zoo, Ham received letters and visitors eager to see the famous astrochimp. Zookeepers would respond to fan mail with Ham’s stamped footprint as his “signature.”
In 1980, Ham left the National Zoo for North Carolina Zoological Park. At last, he was able to live with other chimps after essentially solitary confinement for so many years.
Final Years and Death
Ham spent his last three years at the North Carolina zoo in the company of a small group of fellow chimps. He died at the age of 26 on January 19, 1983.
The cause of Ham’s relatively premature death was heart and liver disease. An necropsy was performed, and his remains were sent to the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology in Washington D.C.
While Ham could have been stuffed and mounted for display, officials opted for a simple burial. Ham’s body was cremated, and his ashes interred at the International Space Hall of Fame in New Mexico.
Though hidden from the public eye in his later years, Ham still made contributions to science even after his death.
An Enduring Legacy
Ham’s single pioneering spaceflight paved the way for orbital missions that soon followed. Just 2 months after his feat, Yuri Gagarin became the first human in space.
Ham proved hominids could function during spaceflight, and his success was instrumental in launching manned orbital missions. Astrochimps like Ham were vital to testing equipment, life support systems and the effects of space on cognitive ability.
While out of the spotlight after 1961, Ham still led a decent life of retirement, mostly thanks to the exemplary conduct during his one Mercury flight. For a brief period, Ham the chimp was among the most famous beings on Earth due to a singular act of courage. His legacy as the first astrochimp endures even decades later.
Biography of a non-human astronaut
Ham was born in 1957 in a rainforest in Cameroon, which was then a French colony in central Africa. He was caught and taken to Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico, which has an astronaut school for chimps.
They were taught to pull levers by giving them a banana pellet as a reward and an electric shock to the feet if they didn’t. The chosen chimp would test life support systems and demonstrate that equipment could be operated during spaceflight. Ham showed great aptitude, and was selected the day before the flight.
The Mercury-Redstone rocket took Ham into space on January 31, 1961. He was strapped into a capsule inside the nosecone of the rocket. The rocket travelled at 9,000km/h, and reached an altitude of 251km. The whole flight took 16 minutes from launch to return. NASAThroughout the journey Ham was obliged to pull a lever. He received two shocks for not doing this correctly, out of 50 pulls. He achieved this with a 16cm rectal thermometer in place to monitor his temperature.
He experienced 6. 6 minutes of free fall and 14. 7_g_ of acceleration on descent – much greater than predicted. The biomedical data showed Ham experienced stress during acceleration and deceleration.
Jane Goodall, an expert in primate behavior, said she had never seen such terror in a chimp’s expression. However, Ham was calm when weightless.
Ham made it through the flight, but he almost drowned when the capsule started to fill with water after it landed in the ocean. Fortunately, the helicopter recovery team reached him in time. Ham’s treat on emerging from the spacecraft was an apple, which he devoured eagerly. NASAAfter his flight, Ham lived for 20 years by himself, in a zoo in Washington DC. People wrote him letters, and some were answered by zoo staff signed with Ham’s fingerprint. In 1980 he was sent to another zoo to live with a group of chimps. He died in 1983 at the age of 26.
A proposal to stuff and display his body was abandoned after an outcry. But he did undergo a postmortem. Ham’s flesh was stripped from his skeleton, cremated, and buried at the Space Hall of Fame in Almogordo, New Mexico. The National Museum of Health and Medicine in Washington DC retains his bones.
The Tragic Tale of Ham the Chimp
FAQ
Where is Ham the chimp buried?
What happened to the monkey in space?
When did Ham come back from space?
Who sent Ham the chimp to space?
Why was Ham selected for a space chimp?
The chosen chimp would test life support systems and demonstrate that equipment could be operated during spaceflight. Ham showed great aptitude, and was selected the day before the flight. On January 31, 1961, Ham was launched into space, strapped into a capsule inside the nosecone of a Mercury-Redstone rocket.
Who was the first Chimp to survive spaceflight?
In 1961, Ham made history when he became the first chimp to survive spaceflight. Though he returned to Earth as a celebrity, his training was controversial. NASA Ham the chimpanzee in his capsule with handler Edward Dittmer. Ham the chimp made history as the first chimp in space on January 31, 1961.
How did Ham become a chimpanzee?
After 18 months of training, Ham was selected as the chimpanzee whose life would be risked to test the safety of space flight on the ape body. On January 31, 1961, after several hours of waiting on the launch pad at Cape Canaveral, FL, 3 ½ year old Ham was propelled into space, strapped into a container called a “couch.”
Why is Ham the chimp so famous?
Although Ham’s space flight only lasted 16 and a half minutes, the data it provided NASA engineers proved invaluable to the future of space flight. And it made Ham the chimp one of the most famous apes to ever live. Ham the chimp was born in July 1957 in French Cameroon.