Sally Ride: Scientific Pioneer (1951-2012)

Sally-Ride

By Patricia Rogler

Sally Ride was a famous astronaut and physicist who was a pioneer in many ways. She was the first American woman to fly in space, and at the age of 32, she was also the youngest American in space. She was the only person to sit on both panels investigating the Challenger shuttle accident in 1986 and the Columbia crash in 2003. She was the first director of NASA’s Office of Exploration, and she helped develop the space shuttle’s robotic arm, used for the deployment and retrieval of satellites.

Education

She received bachelor’s degrees in physics and English in 1973, a master’s degree in physics in 1975, and a Ph.D. in astrophysics in 1978, all from Stanford. As she was finishing her studies, she noticed an advertisement from NASA, encouraging men and women to apply for the space program. Of 8,000 applicants, she was one of the 35 chosen.

NASA and Beyond

During her time at NASA, she was part of the crew for the Challenger shuttle which launched on June 18, 1983. She was also part of a second shuttle mission in 1984. She was scheduled for a third mission, but NASA halted all missions following the Challenger shuttle accident which killed all crew members onboard.

After the investigation, she became the director of NASA’s office for long-range and strategic planning. In 1987 she retired from NASA, and in 1989 became a professor of physics and the director of the California Space Institute at the University of California, San Diego. In 2001 she started her own company, Sally Ride Science, which provides school programs and materials to inspire young people, especially girls, to pursue careers in science.

Sally Ride has been awarded many honors for her scientific contributions, including being inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame and the Astronaut Hall of Fame. She has received the NASA Space Flight Medal and the NCAA’s Theodore Roosevelt Award, among others. President Obama described her as “a national hero and a powerful role model” when she passed away in July 2012.

Classroom Discussion

  • Have Sally Ride’s accomplishments given you an interest in science? If so, in what scientific discipline are you most interested and why?
  • Do you think NASA should continue its exploration of the moon, do you think they should concentrate on Mars now or do you think they should discontinue space exploration?