Northrop Grumman names 'SS Sally Ride' cargo craft for first US woman in space

She set sail as a U.S. Navy research vessel, shipped out as postage stamp, entered circulation on the reverse of a coin and stood tall as a monument. Now, America's first woman in space is set to return to Earth orbit as the namesake of a space station-bound cargo capsule.

Northrop Grumman has christened its 19th (NG-18) Cygnus resupply spacecraft the "S.S. Sally Ride."

"Today we recognize and celebrate the contributions of a true pioneer of spaceflight by naming our next Cygnus spacecraft after Dr. Sally Ride," said Kathy Warden, chair, chief executive officer and president of Northrop Grumman, in a video posted to the company's social media channels on Monday (Oct. 3). "She was a steadfast advocate for diversity and equality in science, inspiring countless women to pursue STEM [science, technology, engineering and mathematics] careers, including me."

Photos: Sally Ride, first American woman in space

One of the first six women selected in 1978 to become a NASA astronaut, Ride launched into space on June 18, 1983, as a member of the shuttle Challenger's STS-7 crew. She flew again on Challenger a year later, serving as an STS-41G mission specialist, bringing her total time in space to just over two weeks.

Ride set records on the ground, too. A nationally ranked youth tennis player, Ride was the first woman to serve as CapCom, or capsule communicator, in mission control. After leaving the astronaut corps, she continued to serve the U.S. space program, becoming the only member of both investigation boards that followed NASA's two shuttle tragedies. Ride also joined the 2009 commission that helped shape the agency's current spaceflight programs.

In 2001, Ride and her life partner, Tam O'Shaughnessy, co-founded Sally Ride Science, a company aimed at motivating young girls to pursue careers in science and engineering. Ride died in 2012 at the age of 61.

"Her impact continues to be felt today. She paved the way for future generations to push the boundaries of spaceflight and exploration," said Warden. "We are honored to name our newest Cygnus spacecraft after this remarkable woman."

In the years since her death, Ride has been honored with the naming of the U.S Navy's R/V Sally Ride; has had her likeness appear on a U.S. postage stamp and a U.S. quarter dollar coin; and has been memorialized with a life-size bronze and gold statue outside of the Cradle of Aviation Museum in Long Island, New York. She has also been honored with a Barbie doll, a Little People figure and a LEGO minifigure, and she was the namesake for the site where two NASA probes hit the moon in 2012.

The S.S. Sally Ride is targeted to launch to the International Space Station no earlier than Nov. 6, riding atop a Northrop Grumman Antares 230+ rocket from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport (MARS) on Wallops Island in Virginia. The spacecraft will deliver more than 8,200 pounds (3,700 kilograms) of cargo for the station's Expedition 68 crew. Once its mission has been completed, the S.S. Sally Ride will perform a destructive reentry into Earth's atmosphere over the Pacific Ocean.

The S.S. Sally Ride is only the third Cygnus to be named for a woman. Northrop Grumman has a tradition of naming each of its spacecraft after someone who has made great contributions to human spaceflight. Past namesakes have included former company executive J.R. Thompson, U.S. Air Force Manned Orbiting Laboratory candidate Robert Lawrence, NASA mathematician Katherine Johnson and NASA astronauts David Low, Gordon Fullerton, Janice Voss, Deke Slayton, Rick Husband, Alan Poindexter, John Glenn, Gene Cernan, John Young, Roger Chaffee, Alan Bean, Kalpana Chawla and Ellison Onizuka.

The most recent Cygnus, which was launched in February and deorbited in June, was named the S.S. Piers Sellers after a British-American climate scientist who launched on three missions to the space station.

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