Stanford celebrates 13 women’s history makers | Stanford News
Sally Ride, Jessica Watkins, Ellen Ochoa, Mae Jemison
A constellation of remarkable Stanford alumnae have taken giant leaps for women in space.
Sally Ride, ’73, MS ’75, PhD ’78, applied to be an astronaut while earning her doctorate in physics, after spotting a NASA ad in the Stanford Daily. In 1983, she became the first American woman in space as a mission specialist on the Challenger.
Mae Jemison, ’77, entered Stanford at age 16, earning degrees in chemical engineering and African American studies. She became the first Black woman in space when she orbited Earth on the Endeavour, in 1992.
Ellen Ochoa, MS ’81, PhD ’85, studied electrical engineering at Stanford and became the first Hispanic woman to go to space when she served a nine-day mission aboard the Space Shuttle Discovery in 1993. She later moved into leadership at NASA, acting as the first Hispanic director and second female director of the Johnson Space Center – a leap that presented its own challenges.
“I [had] just assumed that my hard work and accomplishments would make it obvious that I was ready for the next level – and [I] found out that wasn’t the case. I had to speak up about what I thought I was capable of doing, and what I wanted,” Ochoa told CNBC last year.
Two other Stanford graduates also made NASA history. Eileen Collins, MS ’86, was the first woman to pilot a shuttle, as well as the first woman to command a space shuttle mission. And Susan Helms, MS ’85, was the first woman on the crew of the International Space Station.
Stanford’s latest star is Jessica Watkins, ’10, who interned at NASA’s Ames Research Center while as an undergraduate studying geological and environmental sciences. She’s slated to become the first Black woman on a long-term International Space Station mission this year and will head to the moon in 2024.
Chances are good that Watkins could also head to Mars in the 2030s, becoming one of the first humans to set foot on another planet. Asked recently if she’d invite the challenge, Watkins was quick to answer.
“Sign me up,” she said, “as long as there’s a ride back.”
Image credit: NASA
