Medal, NASA Space Flight, Sally Ride

Object Details

Owner
Sally K. Ride
Summary
This set of items constitute the NASA Space Flight Medal awarded to Dr. Sally K. Ride after her first space flight aboard STS-7 in 1983. The medal is bestowed upon all space flight crew members after the completion of a mission.
Sally Ride became the first American woman in space when she flew aboard STS-7 in 1983. Her second and last space mission was STS-41G in 1984. A physicist with a Ph.D., she joined the astronaut corps in 1978 as a part of the first class of astronauts recruited specifically for the Space Shuttle Program. Viewed as a leader in the NASA community, she served on the Rogers Commission after the Challenger disaster in 1986 as well as the Columbia Accident Investigation Board (CAIB) in 2003. 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.
After she retired from NASA in 1987, Dr. Ride taught first at Stanford and later at the University of California, San Diego. Until her death in 2012, she was president and CEO of Sally Ride Science, a company that promoted science education.
Dr. Ride’s partner, Dr. Tam O’Shaughnessy, donated the medals and accompanying items to the Museum in 2013.
Country of Origin
United States of America
See more items in
National Air and Space Museum Collection
Credit Line
Gift of Tam O'Shaughnessy
Data Source
National Air and Space Museum
Inventory Number
A20140200000
Type
AWARDS-Medals & Ribbons
Restrictions & Rights
CC0
Materials
White Metal Alloy
Copper Alloys
Gold Coating
Synthetic Fabric
Dimensions
Overall: 3.8 × 7.6 × 0.6cm (1 1/2 × 3 × 1/4 in.)
GUID
http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/nv95f3de0f2-db6d-4cac-8289-7c9e774751b8
Record ID
nasm_A20140200000