This video shows Ham, the first chimpanzee launched into space by NASA in 1961, testing whether a living being could survive launch, weightlessness, and reentry. His mission proved that humans could follow, laying the groundwork for the first crewed spaceflights of the space age. Follow @spaceeves #SpaceHistory #NASA #HamTheChimp #HumanSpaceflight | SpaceEve

First American in space, Alan Shepard, used his astronaut diaper before liftoff on May 5, 1961. | USA TODAY Video

Do you know who was the first American astronaut to travel into space? On #ThisDayInHistory in 1961, Navy Commander Alan Bartlett Shepard, Jr., became the first American astronaut to travel into space. His suborbital flight, which lasted 15 minutes, was a major triumph for NASA. https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/the-first-american-in-space | HISTORY