Sally Ride

Growing up in California, Ride's parents gave this telescope to her and her sister, Karen "Bear" Ride, when they were children. She would set up the telescope on her family's front lawn. She reportedly used the telescope more often than the microscope her parents gave her.

As a teenager she took up tennis and within a few years was ranked 18th nationally. Ride took her first tennis lesson when she was nine years old. She entered the private Westlake School for Girls in Los Angeles in 1965 on a partial tennis scholarship. 

In 1968, Ride enrolled at Swarthmore College as a physics major, but she dropped out after three semesters to work on her tennis game full time.

In 1970, Ride entered Stanford University, as a double major in physics and English literature. Ride continued at Stanford for a PhD in physics, where her research focused on the absorption of X-rays by interstellar gas.

As a scientist astronaut rather than a pilot, Ride trained for flight in the backseat of a Northrop T-38 training jet, learning navigation and communication procedures. She so enjoyed the experience of flying that she took private lessons and earned her pilot license.

Like the rest of her peers, Ride had to learn the mechanics of how to operate the newly created Space Shuttle fleet. Her papers contain the shuttle training materials Ride used, along with her own personal notes.

Ride trained extensively on the Canadarm, a large artificial arm used to lift payloads into orbit and retrieve them.

While learning to use the new space shuttle remote manipulator arm, Ride supported missions from Earth as backup orbiter Capsule Communicator (CAPCOM) for STS-2 and prime orbiter CAPCOM for STS-3.

In 1986, Ride was appointed to the Rogers Commission to investigate the causes and recommend remedies after Challenger broke apart during its launch

She similarly served on a commission to investigate the loss of the Columbia crew in 2003. Ride was the only astronaut to serve on these investigative bodies and the only person to serve on both.

She also led the task force that produced a visionary strategic planning report in 1987 titled, “NASA Leadership and America’s Future in Space,” but known popularly as the Ride Report. That year Ride was given the NASA Outstanding Leadership medal.