December 14, 2021 - National Alabama Day | Monkey Day

Welcome to December 14, 2021 on the National Day Calendar. Today we celebrate an inspiring State and monkeying around. When the crew of the Apollo 11 touched down on the Moon, Americans looked on with a sense of awe—and immense pride. And probably no one more so than the people of Alabama. Scientists and engineers in the Cotton State developed rockets for the space program using technology acquired from Germany after World War II. The rockets were designed in Alabama, but also built with steel manufactured in the state. If not for the Saturn rockets produced there, American astronauts wouldn’t have been able to get into orbit and eventually onto the moon. On National Alabama Day, celebrate the people and culture of the Cotton State…or the Yellowhammer state. They have two nicknames. Why not? They deserve it. On May 28th, 1959, two of the greatest heroes of space travel returned to Earth after a 15 minute space flight. It may not sound like much, but it was the first time astronauts were able to survive a return trip from space. And did I mention that the astronauts were both monkeys? One was named Able, and the other was Miss Baker. These brave little primates paved the way for space exploration by helping scientists to understand the physical stress of spaceflight. Unfortunately, Able passed away only a few days later, but Miss Baker lived another 25 years. When she passed away in 1984, over 300 people attended her funeral, paying tribute to her part in the history of spaceflight. On Monkey Day, we celebrate the primates who took the first steps to make mankind’s giant leap possible. I’m Anna Devere and I’m Marlo Anderson. Thanks for joining us as we Celebrate Every Day. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices