THE NORTH RIDING PROJECT

A small black-and-white Parisian stray, Félicette, flew on a French rocket on a sub-orbital mission in October 1963 that reached an altitude of 154km, taking her to place where no feline has gone before – or since.  The trip was brief – just 15 minutes in total – before the capsule that contained Félicette – then designed C341 – detached from its rocket and parachuted safely back to the ground.  A statue of Félicette, sitting on a globe gazing upwards, was erected at the International Space University at Strasbourg in 2019.

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