ASHEBORO, N.C. — You might not know this, but the North Carolina Zoo was once home to ‘Ham,’ the ‘Astrochimp.’
Ham arrived at the North Carolina Zoo on September 25, 1980, to enter retirement.
His name, Ham, is an acronym for Holloman Aero Med. He was born in July 1957, in the French Cameroons in West Africa. He was taken to Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico when he was 2-years-old. In January of 1961, Ham became the first chimpanzee in space aboard the Mercury Redstone Rocket on a sub-orbital flight. His flight led to the launch of America’s first human astronaut, Alan B. Shepard Jr., later that year.
Ham spent many years alone on display at the Washington Zoo until he was moved to the NC Zoo.
The NC Zoo said Ham was introduced to seven other chimpanzees in an effort to socially integrate him into the chimp troop. His favorite companion was Maggie until he passed away in 1983. Maggie passed away in April of 2019.
Ham’s remains were buried at the International Space Hall of Fame in Alamogordo, New Mexico.
