On this day in 1983 - June 18th - physicist and astronaut Sally Ride became the first American woman in space. She was a crew member of STS-7 Challenger which was launched 2 days after the 20th anniversary of Valentina Tereshkova's historic space flight.
On what would have been her 64th birthday, May 26 2015, there was a
set of 5 Google doodles honoring her life. (She died in 2012.)
Her partner Tam O’Shaughnessy wrote:
As the first American woman in space, Sally Ride—who would have been 64 today—captured the nation’s imagination as a symbol of the ability of women to break barriers. But her historic flight represented just one aspect of a remarkable and multifaceted life. She was also a physicist, a science writer, and an inspirational advocate for keeping kids excited about science as they go through school.
