Ride became the first woman to join a NASA space mission when the Challenger launched in 1983. She died on July 23, after battling pancreatic cancer for a year and a half.
Ride joined NASA in 1978, after responding to a newspaper advertisement. After leaving NASA, she was committed to inspring young people, and young women in particular, to pursue the sciences. In 2010, she founded the Sally Ride Science Institute, an organization committed to that cause.
Here are some photos of and inspiring quotes by Ride:
View this video on YouTube
Here's footage of Ride in the history-making aircraft.