All statistics valid as of December 2008.

General Facts

48 different women total including cosmonauts, astronauts, payload specialists, and foreign nationals have flown in space.

5 different female cosmonauts have flown on the Soviet/Russian program*

42 different women have flown with NASA*

*Yelena Kondakova has flown on both Soyuz TM-17 and on STS-84

First Woman in Space

Valentina Tereshkova - Vostok 6. June 16, 1963

First U.S. Woman in Space

Sally Ride - STS-7. June 18-24, 1983

(She was the third woman in space overall after Valentina Tereshkova, above, and Svetlana Savitskaya, who flew on Soyuz T-7 August 19, 1982)

First Woman Space Shuttle Commander

Eileen Collins - STS-93. July 23-27, 1999. She commanded for a second time on STS-114 July 26, 2005

Pamela Melroy was the second woman commander on STS-120 October 23-November 7, 2007

First Woman to Command the International Space Station (ISS)

Peggy Whitson - Whitson completed a six month tour of duty aboard the International Space Station as the ISS Commander for Expedition 16 in April 2008.

First Woman to participate in an Extra-Vehicular Activity (EVA)

Svetlana Savitskaya - Soyuz T-12. July 17, 1984

First U.S. Woman to participate in an EVA

Kathryn (Kathy) Sullivan - STS 41-G. October 11, 1984

Women Space Shuttle Pilots

Eileen Collins - was first woman pilot on STS-63 February 3-11, 1995. She returned as pilot on STS-84
Susan Still - STS-83, STS-94
Pamela Ann Melroy - STS 92, STS-112

Space Shuttle Missions With More than One Woman

STS 41-G Kathryn D. Sullivan, Sally K. Ride
STS 51-L Judith A. Resnik, Sharon Christa McAuliffe
STS-34 Shannon W. Lucid, Ellen S. Baker
STS-32 Bonnie J. Dunbar, Marsha S. Ivins
STS-40 Tamara E. Jernigan, M. Rhea Seddon, Millie Hughes-Fulford
STS-50 Bonnie J. Dunbar, Ellen S. Baker
STS-47 N. Jan Davis, Mae C. Jemison
STS-57 Nancy J. Sherlock, Janice E. Voss
STS-58 M. Rhea Seddon, Shannon W. Lucid
STS-63 Eileen M. Collins, Janice E. Voss
STS-67 Tamara E. Jernigan, Wendy B. Lawrence
STS-71 Ellen S. Baker, Bonnie J. Dunbar
STS-70 Nancy Jane Currie, Mary Ellen Weber
STS-73 Kathryn C. Thornton, Catherine G. Coleman
STS-76 Shannon W. Lucid, Linda M. Godwin
STS-83 Susan L. Still, Janice E. Voss
STS-84 Eileen M. Collins, Elena V. Kondakova
STS-94 Susan L. Still, Janice E. Voss
STS-91 Wendy B. Lawrence, Janet L. Kavandi
STS-96 Ellen Ochoa, Tamara E. Jernigan, Julie Payette
STS-93 Eileen M. Collins, Catherine G. Coleman
STS-99 Janet L. Kavandi, Janice E. Voss
STS-101 Mary Ellen Weber, Susan J. Helms
STS-112 Pamela Melroy, Sandra Magnus
STS-107 Kalpana Chawla, Laurel Clark
STS-114 Eileen M. Collins, Wendy Lawrence
STS-121 Stephanie D. Wilson, Lisa M. Nowak
STS-116 Sunita Williams, Joan Higginbotham
STS-118 Barbara R. Morgan, Tracy E. Caldwell

Women Astronauts from Astronaut Classes of 1998, and 2000 and 2004 who have not yet flown

DOROTHY METCALF-LINDENBURGER
MISSION SPECIALIST CANDIDATE
ASTRONAUT CLASS OF 2004
Assigned to the crew of STS-131.

PATRICIA HILLIARD ROBERTSON (M.D.)
MISSION SPECIALIST CANDIDATE (Deceased)
ASTRONAUT CLASS OF 1998
Died May 24, 2001 of injuries sustained in the crash of a private plane
Served as the office representative for the Crew Healthcare System (CHeCS), and a Crew Support Astronaut (CSA) for the ISS Expedition 2 Crew.

NICOLE PASSONNO STOTT
MISSION SPECIALIST CANDIDATE
ASTRONAUT CLASS OF 2000
Assigned to Expedition-19 and is scheduled to launch to the International Space Station with the crew of STS-128 and return on a Soyuz flight.

SHANNON WALKER
MISSION SPECIALIST CANDIDATE
ASTRONAUT CLASS OF 2004
Assigned as a back-up Expedition 19 crew member.

Information about individual female astronauts may be found at Johnson Spaceflight Center's Astronaut Biographies page. Ames Research Center maintains a page about current Women of NASA. The History Office also maintains a page about the First Lady Astronaut Trainees, or Mercury 13.

Information about Eilene Galloway, who helped create NASA.

Steven J. Dick, NASA Chief Historian
Steve Garber, NASA History Web Curator
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