Sally Kristen Ride was born in 1951, in Los Angeles, California. Sally had an interest in sports from early on. By age five, she's reading the sports page of the newspaper by herself. She is an avid tennis player, and she also plays softball with the neighborhood boys.In high school, she became a topnotch tennis player.
In 1972, one of the world's greatest female tennis players, Billie Jean King, sees Sally play. She suggests that Ride quit college and become a tennis pro. But Sally Ride chose to remain in school. She earns degrees in both English and physics.
After getting her Ph.D. in physics, Sally starts her quest for employment. Seeing an ad in the newspaper that NASA wants astronauts, and for the first time, women will be considered, Ride applies. The applicants include 1,251 other women and about 7,000 men. In January 1978, NASA chooses 35 astronauts, including six female scientists. One of them is Sally K. Ride. Needless to say, Sally is elated. "I'm so excited. I'd like to go up tomorrow!" she says.
Sally trains with her class,called the "Thirty-Five New Guys" (TFNG). After a year, Ride and classmate John Fabian are assigned to mastering the space shuttle's 50-foot robotic arm. The giant arm is mounted on the side of the shuttle's cargo bay, which is used to grab and move objects while in space.
In 1982, NASA announces the crew for STS-7. Robert Crippen, the first shuttle pilot, will be the head commander. Frederick (Rick) Hauck, a TFNG member, will be it's pilot. The flight will be the first test of the robotic arm's ability to retrieve a satellite. John Fabian and Sally Ride are then chosen as mission specialists.
Even though Ride has a Ph.D. and the same training as the men, some believe that she has been picked just because she's a woman. Her shuttle commander, Crippen, heartily disagrees. At a press conference, he states, "She is flying with us because she is the very best person for the job. There is no man I would rather have in her place."
Then, NASA adds medical doctor Norm Thagard to the roster. He is in charge of studying space sickness. With five astronauts, the STS-7 mission now has the largest crew ever to fly in space.
June 18,3:15 a.m. Saturday, 1983, is launch day for STS-7. At 7:33 a.m., the shuttle gets "into gear." Searing white-hot plumes spew from the reusable solid rockets. Signs are seen, "Ride, Sally Ride!" A large crowd is there cheering on the launch of America's first woman in space.
As the shuttle takes off, Ride and the othere members are thrust back into their seats by three times the force of gravity. The two solid boosters fall away and parachute into the ocean, where they will be recovered for later use. After eight minutes, the shuttle's engines cut off. Inside the shuttle, Ride is weightless, and soaring 185 miles above the earth.
Soon after the shuttle reaches orbit, Hauck opens the cargo bay doors to expose three satellites.
Ride and Fabian open a sunshade protecting the first satellite to be released. When they release the satellite,it fires its own little booster to climb to a higher orbit.
The next day, another satellite is deployed. Dr. Thagard is monitoring the crew's health. Not being able to exercise, but with stretch cords holding her "down," Sally runs in place to keep in shape.
On the fifth day of the flight, the last satellite is released. It takes a photograph of the Challenger; it's the first time a shuttle is photographed while in space. Two hours later, Fabian uses the robotic arm to make the first satellite catch in space. Sally then takes her turn at the controls. She and Fabian release and catch the satellite five times. Crippen states, "We pick up and deliver."
After six successful days in space, the crew is finally ready to come home. Due to the cloud cover over Florida's Kennedy Space Center, the craft must land in California. After having traveled more than two and a half million miles, the shuttle touches earth on Friday, July 24.
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