The
Soviets sent the dog Laika and other animals into space before humans.
NASA sent chimpanzees into space to pave the way for astronauts. The
French, a little behind the superpowers, sent a cat into space.
On
October 18th, 1963, the Centre national d’études in France was set to
send a small cat named Félix into space. After lagging behind its Soviet
and American competitors, France was eager to stake its claim in the
space race—with cats, for some reason. But on launch day, the
mischievous little beast went missing—and an accidental heroine stepped
in to take his place. Her name was Félicette.
From the streets of
Paris, this tuxedo kitty—nicknamed “Astrocat”—would reach heights never
achieved by feline kind. On October 24th, 1963, Félicette jetted 130
miles above Earth on a liquid-fueled French Véronique AG1 rocket,
soaring high above the Algerian Sahara Desert. She returned just fifteen
minutes later, already a decorated heroine for her nation.
Read about
the French space program that launched a kitty at Gizmodo.
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