Space travel became extremely important to the world during the early years of the Cold War. The space race was extremely important to the United States and the Soviet Union. It always seemed like the United States of America was going to be the first to go into space; however, on October 4, 1957, Sputnik was launched into space by the Soviet Union. The Soviet Union's entry into space caused immense fear throughout the world and further fueled America's desire to enter space. After successfully launching artificial rockets, attention then shifted to sending humans into space. Due to growing interest in space travel, animals have been used as experimental counterparts. Animals played a major role in the Cold War, as the world's most dominant countries embarked on the space race. The animals were not sent into space as a stunt, but rather used to test whether humans could survive the dangerous effects of space travel. Animal tests were used to see if humans had the ability to function properly while in space. With the help of animals used in space travel, the dream of sending humans into space has become a reality. America, for example, relied heavily on the use of monkeys, rodents, fruit flies, and many other creatures. Most of the primates used were rhesus monkeys; however, chimpanzees were introduced later. Chimpanzees eventually began to be used more regularly since they are humans' closest relatives, sharing 98.6% of the same DNA. Some of the animals sent into space will become famous upon their arrival. One of the most famous space chimpanzees, as well as the first chimpanzee to enter space, was known as Ham. Ham is an acronym for Holloman Aerospace Medical Center. Holloman Aerospace Medi... middle of paper ...... first American in space, I like to remind them of a chimpanzee who beat him to it” (LIFE). Ham is truly an American hero who will never be forgotten. Works Cited “Chimp Hams it Up for Press, Spurns Couch.” Los Angeles Times (file 1923-present): 3. February 4, 1961. ProQuest. Internet. March 30, 2014.A Sun, Staff C. “SPACE CHIMP HAM RETURNS A HERO.” The Sun (1837-1988): February 1, 201961. ProQuest. Internet. March 30, 2014. Miles, Marvin. “SPACE CHIMP SURVIVES FLIGHT 155 MILES HIGH.” Los Angeles Times (file 1923 to present): February 1, 1961. ProQuest. Internet. March 30, 2014. “1961: a chimpanzee returns safely after a space flight. » BBC News. BBC, January 31, 1961. Web. March 30, 2014. “LIFE With the Astrochimps: Early Stars of the Space Race.” " LIFE. Ed. Ben Cosgrove. Np, and Web. March 30, 2014. “Their story.” One small step: the story of space chimpanzees - Their story. Np, and Web. March 30. 2014.