Inspirational women

Katherine Johnson Receives Presidential Medal of Freedom At 97

/ Inspirational women

97-Year-Old Katherine Johnson played a role in every major US space program, from Alan Shepard’s inaugural flight to the Space Shuttle. Today she became a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the United States’ highest civilian honor, for a hugely influential career in mathematics. Johnson’s inspirational work for the U.S. space program predates the …

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All-Female Russian Crew Start Mock Mission To The Moon

/ Astronauts

A year after Russia sent it’s first female cosmonaut to the International Space Station (ISS), a group of six Russian women are currently undergoing an 8-day analogue mission to the Moon. The accomplished women, with expertise in backgrounds including biophysics and medicine, entered a suite of wood-panelled rooms on October 28 at Moscow’s Institute of …

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The Martian’s Jessica Chastain Discusses Lack Of Women In Space

/ Astronauts, Inspiration

At the recent Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) premiere of the highly anticipated movie The Martian, actress Jessica Chastain, who plays Captain Melissa Lewis, the Mars mission commander, took time to highlight the lack of women in space. “Around 10% of astronauts are women, which seems low to me. In our film, out of a …

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Sunita Williams To Fly To ISS On US Commercial Vehicle

/ Astronauts, Inspirational women

After launching to space on both NASA’s Space Shuttle and then the Russian Soyuz rocket, Sunita (Suni) Williams will be one of the first female NASA astronaut to fly onboard the new US commercial vehicles being developed. Suni, who formerly held the record for the longest EVA (spacewalk) time by a female astronaut, was chosen along with astronaut …

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New Video Shows Dr.Rhea Seddon Being Selected By NASA As One Of The First 6 Female Astronauts

/ Astronauts, Inspirational women

A fascinating new video was posted online this week showing Dr.Rhea Seddon being told by a TV presenter in 1978 that she had been selected by NASA as one of the first 6 female astronauts for the agency. After 15 years of NASA selecting solely male astronauts, Dr.Margaret Rhea Seddon and her 5 colleagues made …

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The Untold Story of the New Horizons Mission Team

/ Inspirational women, Science Spotlight

Tomorrow (July 14) at 7:49 am EDT we see a dwarf planet up-close for the first time, but behind this historic achievement is a team of brilliant, hard-working women. The New Horizons mission will fly-by Pluto tomorrow after travelling through the Solar System for over 9 years, allowing the world to learn about this icy dwarf …

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Valentina’s Day – Celebrating The Day Valentina Tereshkova Became The First Woman In Space

/ Astronauts, Inspirational women

52 years ago on this day, Valentina Tereshkova launched on her Vostok 6 mission and became the first woman in space, breaking the ultimate glass ceiling. Valentina was partly selected for the Soviet Space Program for her exceptional parachuting ability, having conducted 126 jumps, at a time when cosmonauts were required to parachute from their capsules …

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ESA Astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti Returns To Earth, Becoming Longest Serving Female Astronaut In Space

/ Astronauts, Inspirational women

Astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti landed today in her Soyuz descent module on a desert steppe in Kazakhstan having broken the world record for the longest serving female astronaut in space, spending 200 days on the ISS. The record was previously held at 195 days by NASA astronaut Suni Williams. European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut became the first Italian woman …

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Inspirational Google Doodles Remember Sally Ride, The First American Woman In Space

/ Astronauts, Inspirational women

Today’s Google doodles celebrate what would’ve been the 64th birthday of Sally Ride, the first American woman in space. Throughout her career at NASA Sally  informed major space policy decisions by being a presidential panel member of the 2009 Review of United States Human Spaceflight Plans Committee. This was an independent review of US Human Spaceflight …

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