Why are there dozens of dead animals floating in space?
On July 20, 1969, Neil Armstrong became the first man in history to step on the surface of the moon. Millions of people tuned in to a broadcast of the event, and after Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin, Jr. joined Armstrong, the two spent about two and a half hours gathering lunar rocks to bring back for analysis. The success was a triumph, not just for the United States, but for mankind, the imagination and the possibilities of exploration. What many people don’t know, however, are the special sacrifices that had to be made in order to get astronauts up into space at all. The major unsung heroes of space exploration, it turns out, are animals. Before space programs started sending people up into orbit, scientists couldn’t agree on what it would be like for a living organism to leave Earth’s atmosphere. What would be the effects of
