The Little Joe 1B was a
launch escape system
A launch escape system (LES) or launch abort system (LAS) is a crew-safety system connected to a space capsule. It is used in the event of a critical emergency to quickly separate the capsule from its launch vehicle in case of an emergency requiri ...
test of the Mercury spacecraft, conducted as part of the U.S.
Mercury program
Project Mercury was the first human spaceflight program of the United States, running from 1958 through 1963. An early highlight of the Space Race, its goal was to put a man into Earth orbit and return him safely, ideally before the Soviet Un ...
. The mission also carried a female
rhesus monkey
The rhesus macaque (''Macaca mulatta''), colloquially rhesus monkey, is a species of Old World monkey. There are between six and nine recognised subspecies split between two groups, the Chinese-derived and the Indian-derived. Generally brown or g ...
(''Macaca mulatta'') named Miss Sam in the Mercury spacecraft. The mission was launched January 21, 1960, from Wallops Island, Virginia. The Little Joe 1B flew to an
apogee
An apsis (; ) is the farthest or nearest point in the orbit of a planetary body about its primary body. The line of apsides (also called apse line, or major axis of the orbit) is the line connecting the two extreme values.
Apsides perta ...
of 9.3 statute miles (15.0 km) and a range of 11.7 miles (18.9 km) out to sea. Miss Sam survived the 8 minute 35 second flight in good condition. The spacecraft was recovered by a Marine helicopter and returned to Wallops Island within about 45 minutes. Miss Sam was one of many
monkeys used in space travel research.
Gallery
See also
*
Little Joe
*
Sam (monkey), NASA Project Mercury rhesus monkey
*
Monkeys and apes in space
Before Human spaceflight, humans went into space in the 1960s, several other animals in space, animals were launched into space, including numerous other primates, so that scientists could investigate the biological effects of spaceflight. The ...
*
List of individual monkeys
This annotated list of individual monkeys includes monkeys who are in some way famous or notable. The list does not include notable apes or fictional primates.
Monkey actors
* Crystal – (brown capuchin) played in ''The Hangover Part II'', ''N ...
References
External links
NASA Project Mercury Mission LJ-1Bat ''Kennedy Space Science and Technology'' website
at ''
Encyclopedia Astronautica
The ''Encyclopedia Astronautica'' is a reference web site on Space exploration, space travel. The encyclopedia includes 79,433 articles with 13,741 illustrations, a comprehensive catalog of missiles, spacecraft, space technology, astronauts, an ...
''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Little Joe 1b
Project Mercury
1960 in Virginia
January 1960 in the United States