Amazing Animals: Space Monkeys

Amazing Animals: Space Monkeys

Bible Blast: Read Judges 6:11-16

“I know the plans I have for you,” says the LORD. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” Jeremiah 29:11

Monkeys don’t have dreams—not “I was in front of the class in my underwear” types of dreams, and not the kind of dreams that are like goals. Even if they have a nice tree-swinging image in their sleep, monkeys probably just wake up in their trees every morning and think about eating bananas.

Miss Baker and Able are two monkeys that may have simply dreamed about bananas, but they got a whole lot more. On May 28, 1959, they became the first monkeys to travel into space and back again successfully. Miss Baker was a little squirrel monkey, and Able was a rhesus monkey.

The whole space expedition only lasted about fifteen minutes, but during that time the little astronauts experienced nine minutes of weightlessness. Since they were strapped in, they didn’t get to float around or anything, but I bet they thought it felt really weird!

When the space capsule was recovered and Miss Baker and Able appeared to be okay, everyone was excited. After relaxing in an air-conditioned room for a bit, the monkeys were sent off to a press conference! The whole world was interested in their space flight, because if Miss Baker and Able were able to fly into space and back again successfully, then it probably was possible for a human to go into space too.

That is exactly what happened. On April 12, 1961, a Russian guy named Yuri Gagarin became the first human to visit outer space and the first human to orbit the earth. Since then, hundreds of humans have gone into space.

Miss Baker and Able will always be two of the most famous monkeys in the world because of what they did. Two normal little monkeys. One day they’re sitting in a tree. The next day they’re changing the course of history.

No matter who you are or what you do, God can use you to do great things.

Girl Gab: What great thing do you dream of doing? What did your mom dream about doing when she was your age? Tell God that you want to do big things for him with your life.