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PODCAST. Under the eyes of Louis XVI at Versailles, a sheep, a duck and a rooster are the first pioneers in the conquest of the sky.
Frederic Lewino and Gwendoline Dos Santos
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Who was the first Russian in space? A dog named Laïka. The first American? A monkey named Ham. Animals have always preceded man in his conquest of the sky. So, on September 19, 1783, who were the three steel-nerved test pilots to leave the ground in a flying machine? A sheep, wittily nicknamed Montauciel, the Coin-Coin duck and the Cocorico rooster! It was the Academy of Sciences which made the choice of the candidates after having hesitated for a long time. They finally chose Montauciel, because the physiology of the sheep resembles that of man. As for the other two, they already had flight experience.
“A kind of admiration”
In the morning, several hundred curious people gather in the first courtyard of the Palace of Versailles…
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