Editing Monkeys and apes in space (section)

{{Short description|Space travel by primates}}
{{For|the band|Space Monkeys}}
{{redirect|Able and Baker|the pair of nuclear tests|Operation Crossroads}}
{{Use American English|date=June 2023}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2023}}
[[File:Ham the chimp (cropped).jpg|thumb|upright|[[Ham (chimpanzee)|Ham]], a chimpanzee, became the first great ape in space during his January 31, 1961, suborbital flight aboard [[Mercury-Redstone 2]]]]
Before [[Human spaceflight|humans went into space]] in the 1960s, several other [[animals in space|animals were launched into space]], including numerous other [[primate]]s, so that scientists could investigate the [[biological effects of spaceflight]]. The [[United States]] launched flights containing primate passengers primarily between 1948 and 1961 with one flight in 1969 and one in 1985. [[France]] launched two monkey-carrying flights in 1967. The [[Soviet Union]] and [[Russia]] launched monkeys between 1983 and 1996. Most primates were [[anesthetized]] before lift-off.

Over thirty-two non-human primates flew in the space program; none flew more than once. Numerous backup primates also went through the programs but never flew. Monkeys and non-human apes from several species were used, including [[rhesus macaque]], [[crab-eating macaque]], [[common squirrel monkey|squirrel monkeys]], [[southern pig-tailed macaque|pig-tailed macaque]]s, and [[Common chimpanzee|chimpanzee]]s.