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Summary

On November 29, 1961, the chimpanzee Enos made two orbits for the Mercury MA-5 mission. MA-5 was the first orbital mission by an American primate. This collection consists of the telemetry scroll showing Enos' vital signs during the flight including heart rate, blood pressure, and respiration.

Biographical / Historical

On November 29, 1961, the chimpanzee Enos made two orbits for the Mercury MA-5 mission. MA-5 was the first orbital mission by an American primate. Because of a malfunctioning control jet and an overheated inverter, Enos was brought down after two orbits, instead of the three that were originally planned for the mission. MA-5 met its two primary objectives, testing the spacecraft's environmental control system and the procedures for recovering an astronaut, and thus was considered a complete success. It paved the way for the first manned orbital flight, MA-6, by John Glenn in February 1962.

Identifier

NASM.2009.0018

Creator

United States. National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Date

1961

Provenance

Michael Hornisher, Gift, 2009, NASM.2009.0018

Extent

0.22 Cubic feet (1 box)

Archival Repository

National Air and Space Museum Archives

Scope and Contents

This collection consists of the telemetry scroll showing Enos the chimpanzee's vital signs during the Mercury MA-5 Flight (11/29/61) including heart rate, blood pressure, and respiration.

Arrangement note

Collection is in original order.

Rights

Material is subject to Smithsonian Terms of Use. Should you wish to use NASM material in any medium, please submit an Application for Permission to Reproduce NASM Material, available at Permissions Requests

Restrictions

No restrictions on access.

Citation

Mercury MA-5 Flight (Enos) Telemetry Scroll, NASM.2009.0018, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution.

Topics

Medical Telematics

Space flight

Astronautics

Mercury MA-5 Flight

Type

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Medical notes