Ten fun facts about Sally Ride

Fact 1
After joining NASA in 1978, she also became the first American woman to go into space and the youngest American astronaut to go into space.

Fact 2
There is a ship named after her by the US Navy, as well as a song called "Sally Ride" by Janelle Monae.

Fact 3
She was apart of a committee that investigated the Challenger space shuttle disaster. She had flew twice on it before she left NASA.

Fact 4
Along with science, she was also a nationally ranked tennis player.

Fact 5
She graduated from Stanford University with a bachelor's degree in physics and English.

Fact 6
The advertisement for the space program was in the newspaper and 8,000 people answered it. She was the one chosen to join NASA.

Fact 7
The media quickly jumped at the opportunity to ask questions, because she was a female, prior to her first flight in 1983.

Fact 8
She founded NASA's Office of Exploration after being assigned to the NASA headquarters in the mid 1980's.

Fact 9
She was an advocate for women in science, co-founding Sally Ride Science.

Fact 10
After battling with pancreatic cancer for 17 months, she died in 2012.

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