Sorry Jeff Bezos, these women beat you to it: from the US’ Sally Ride to Russia’s Valentina Tereshkova, 6 female astronauts who pioneered space travel

Jul 5 , 2021

Korea, the US and China’s first female astronauts on the job. Photos: Reuters, Bettmann Archive, Xinhua

Male tech moguls Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos may be grabbing headlines with Space X and Blue Origin, but plenty of women have left their mark too

Before Mae Jemison became the first black astronaut – even getting a cameo in Star Trek – Nasa sent Sally Ride to space for 14 days

As SpaceX, Virgin Galactic and Blue Origin race each other to the stars – Jeff Bezos’s Blue Origin is pulling ahead with his planned flight in July – Nasa, Roscosmos, the ESA and the China National Space Administration continue the work of preparing humanity for life in space.

As of 2020, 570 people had travelled to space, of which just 65 were women – though that number has accelerated in recent years. In June, the UAE introduced the world to the country’s first female astronaut, mechanical engineer Nora Al Matrooshi, who will be heading to Houston for Nasa training late in 2021. In honour of Al Matrooshi joining the international astronaut corps, below are six women who blazed the trail.

Valentina Tereshkova

When Soviet pilot and cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova boarded the Vostok 6 in 1963 to start a three-day mission to research the effects of space flight on female physiology, she made history as the first woman in space. Her capsule is currently on museum display near Moscow, and Tereshkova herself is deputy of Russia’s State Duma for Yaroslavl Oblast. It would be nearly two decades before another woman followed in her footsteps.

Sally Ride

In 1983, physicist Sally Ride headed into space and become the first American woman to do so. With a career total of 14 days, she’s also the first LGBTQ+ astronaut. Nasa had several firsts for women to claim, including engineer and doctor Mae Jemison as the first black astronaut in 1992. Jemison would go on to cameo as a lieutenant on Star Trek: The Next Generation the next year.

Roberta Bondar

Sorry Jeff Bezos, these women beat you to it: from the US’ Sally Ride to Russia’s Valentina Tereshkova, 6 female astronauts who pioneered space travel

Male tech moguls Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos may be grabbing headlines with Space X and Blue Origin, but plenty of women have left their mark too Before Mae Jemison became the first black astronaut – even getting a cameo in Star Trek – Nasa sent Sally Ride to space for 14 days

Male tech moguls Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos may be grabbing headlines with Space X and Blue Origin, but plenty of women have left their mark too

Before Mae Jemison became the first black astronaut – even getting a cameo in Star Trek – Nasa sent Sally Ride to space for 14 days