Sally Ride (1951-2012) was a lesbian astronaut and astrophysicist and became the first American woman in space aboard the space shuttle Challenger in 1983. Born on May 26, 1951, Ride grew up in Los Angeles and went to Stanford University where she was a double major in physics and English. Ride received bachelor’s degrees in both subjects in 1973. She continued to study physics at the university, earning a master’s degree in 1975 and a Ph.D. in 1978. Dr. Sally Ride studied at Stanford University and beat out 1,000 other applicants for a spot in the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) astronaut program. She went through the program’s rigorous training program and got her chance to go into space and the record books in 1983. On June 18, Ride became the first American woman in space, aboard the space shuttle Challenger. As a mission specialist, she helped deploy satellites and worked on other projects.
Plaque located on Market St between Castro and Noe