1948-1949: Albert I and Albert II, rhesus monkies
The first monkey to be launched into space was Albert I, a male rhesus monkey, whose capsule made it to 39 miles on June 11, 1948. But this was technically not space, and Albert not only didn’t survive the mission; he may not have even survived the launch.
The next monkey to go into space, Albert II, fared better. Another rhesus, he made it to 83 miles on June 14, 1949. But he too didn’t survive the mission as his parachute failed to deploy on the return.
