On June 18, 1983, NASA Astronaut Sally K. Ride became the first American woman in space, when she launched with her four crewmates aboard the Space Shuttle Challenger on mission STS-7. Ride and five other women had been selected in 1978 for NASA Astronaut Group 8, the first American selection class to include females. With the advent of the space shuttle, NASA expanded astronaut selection from only pilots to scientists and engineers, and women became eligible for selection. NASA announced Ride and her classmates to the public on Jan. 16, 1978. Slide through to see 1.) Challenger as seen from the SPAS-01 satellite; 2.) astronaut Sally K. Ride sitting in the front seat and looking out the windows of the Earth-orbiting Space Shuttle Challenger; 3.) launch of Space Shuttle Challenger on STS-7 from nasakennedy. Credit: NASA #nasa #otd #sallyride #astronauts #spaceshuttle #challenger #sts7 #nasahistory #astronauts #spaceships #exploration