Little Joe 1B

Little Joe 1B

Little Joe 1B launches from Wallops Flight Facility on January 21, 1960.
Mission type Abort test
Operator NASA
Mission duration 8 minutes, 35 seconds[1]
Distance travelled 19 kilometres (12 mi)[1]
Apogee 14 kilometres (9 mi)[1]
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft type Mercury boilerplate
Manufacturer McDonnell Aircraft
Launch mass 1,007 kilograms (2,220 lb)[1]
Start of mission
Launch date January 21, 1960, 14:23 (1960-01-21UTC14:23Z) UTC
Rocket Little Joe
Launch site Wallops LA-1
End of mission
Landing date January 21, 1960, 14:31 (1960-01-21UTC14:32Z) UTC

Project Mercury
Abort Tests
← Little Joe 2 Beach Abort →

The Little Joe 1B was a Launch Escape System test of the Mercury spacecraft, conducted as part of the U.S. Mercury program. The mission also carried a female rhesus monkey (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 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.

Miss Sam the rhesus monkey 
Miss Sam, with fiberglass couch, being placed in a container for the Little Joe 1B flight 

See also

References

 This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

  1. 1 2 3 4 Warnock, Lynda (November 21, 2006). "LJ-1B (6)". NASA. Retrieved January 16, 2010.
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