CHIMPANZEES whose ancestors helped NASA put men on the Moon are
having a bumpy ride into civilian life. The US Air Force plans
to give away the chimp colony, founded in the 1950s for space
research. But animal welfare groups that hope to acquire the
chimps claim that the bidding process is unfair because a
foundation that now has the animals is withholding key
information about their health. The controversy could further
delay the chimp handover, which bureaucratic snags have already
pushed back four months beyond its original settlement date of 6
October (This Week, 28 June, p 5). The 144 chimps, mostly housed
at the Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico, include the
descendants of animals that flew in space before the first
American astronauts were put into orbit. The USAF has not used
the chimps since the 1970s, but it has leased them to other ...
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