Blasting off into the depths of space isn’t just for humans. Dogs, monkeys and even guinea pigs have made trips beyond our little Earth in missions with space agencies like NASA and the Soviet space program.
In the early days of space exploration, dogs and monkeys were used to test the feasibility of human space travel. Once humans were successfully launched beyond the atmosphere and brought back safely in the 1960s, animals were relegated to the role of "biological payload."