His mission was a success. After completing two orbits, the capsule splashed down. Enos was retrieved in good spirits, reportedly jumping around the deck of the recovery ship and shaking the hands of the sailors. Unfortunately, Enos’s story ends tragically. Eleven months after his flight, he died of dysentery (shigellosis) unrelated to his space travel. He was only six years old.
If Ham was the proof of concept, was the advanced test pilot. In November 1961, NASA was ready to test orbital flight. Unlike Ham’s quick up-and-down, Enos would orbit the Earth twice. Space Chimps