Pushing the boundaries of aeronautics since World War II, Holloman Air Force Base naturally became an integral part of the history of manned space exploration as well. Named to honor Colonel George Holloman, the base serves as a research and testing center, and personnel there have captured the attention of the world with rocket sleds, high-altitude balloon jumps, and setting the current unmanned railed vehicle land speed record at Mach 8.5. In spite of the stiff competition, two individuals and their accomplishments stand out from the rest as particularly noteworthy: Ham and Enos, the space-chimps, and their journeys into space.

Named after the Holloman Aerospace Medical Center where he trained for his voyage, Ham became the first hominid to leave the atmosphere, and more importantly, proved that astronauts could still perform tasks while being subjected to the rigors of space travel.

Joseph Brady, an Army neuroscientist, conditioned Ham to pull the correct lever when certain color lights flashed. He built a machine that gave the chimp an electric shock for wrong or slow answers, and a banana pellet for a quick, correct response.

Ham sat in a specially crafted chair and left Earth aboard the Mercury Redstone 2 on January 31, 1961. His sub-orbital flight lasted nearly 17 minutes. His only injury, after a successful splashdown and recovery, was a bruised nose. Ham’s performance with the levers suffered only a fraction of a second; within months, humans Yuri Gagarin and Alan Shepard followed him into sub-orbital space.

Enos underwent the same training, but his mission proved to be more eventful. On December 21, 1961, Enos spent more than three hours in space, completing two orbits around the Earth. Malfunctioning equipment cut the trip short, and subjected Enos to 79 shocks delivered for correct responses.

Two months later, John Glenn became the first American to orbit the Earth. The heroic voyages of these two chimpanzees gave humanity the assurance we needed to break free of our terrestrial existence. As we explore ever deeper into the universe, we do so thanks to Hal, Enos, and the efforts of the Holloman Aerospace Medical Center.

Researched, written, and narrated by Richard Adams, University of West Florida Public History

Credits and Sources:

Richard Adams, University of West Florida Public History Program