On Jan. 13, 1978, NASA selected its eighth and most diverse class of astronauts yet. The Astronaut Class of 1978, also known as the "Thirty-Five New Guys," included the first six female astronauts.
One of those women, Sally Ride became the first American woman to fly in space in 1983. That same year, Guy Bluford became the first African-American man to fly to space. Their classmate Judith Resnik became the first Jewish-American in space in 1984, and Ellison Onizuka became the first Asian-American in space in 1985.
In addition to Ride and Resnik, NASA's first female astronauts were Shannon Lucid, Margaret Rhea Seddon, Kathryn Sullivan (who would go on to be the first American woman to make a spacewalk), and Anna Fisher, who became the first mother to fly in space.
This astronaut class was unlike any that came before it and kicked off a new era of diversity in space exploration.
On This Day in Space Archive!
Still not enough space? Don't forget to check out our Space Image of the Day, and on the weekends our Best Space Photos and Top Space News Stories of the week.
Join our Space Forums to keep talking space on the latest missions, night sky and more! And if you have a news tip, correction or comment, let us know at: [email protected].
