Sally Ride

“When the space shuttle's engines cut off, and you're finally in space, in orbit, weightless... I remember unstrapping from my seat, floating over to the window, and that's when I got my firs...”

“I think eventually private enterprise will be able to send people into orbit, but I suspect initially it's going to have to be with NASA's help.”

“I have a lot of common sense. I know what needs to be done and how to approach it. I have an ability to work with people on large enterprises.”

“When you're getting ready to launch into space, you're sitting on a big explosion waiting to happen.”

“Rocket science is tough, and rockets have a way of failing.”

“On both of my flights, everything went very well.”

“Because I was a tennis player, Billie Jean King was a hero of mine.”

“Even though NASA tries to simulate launch, and we practice in simulators, it's not the same - it's not even close to the same.”

“I think it's important for little girls growing up, and young women, to have one in every walk of life. So from that point of view, I'm proud to be a role model!”

“I was always very interested in science, and I knew that for me, science was a better long-term career than tennis.”

“I haven't written my memoirs or let the television movie be made about my life.”

“It's well known that many girls have a tendency to dumb down when they're in middle school.”

“I did not come to NASA to make history.”

“I don't have any nicknames.”

“It's no secret that I've been reluctant to use my name for things.”

“I've spent my whole life not talking to people, and I don't see why I should start now.”

“The view of Earth is spectacular.”

“The experience of being in space didn't change my perspective of myself or of the planet or of life. I had no spiritual experience.”

“But when I wasn't working, I was usually at a window looking down at Earth.”