List of women astronauts facts for kids

In 1963 Soviet cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova became the first woman in space on her Vostok 6 flight of 48 orbits, and is the only woman to fly solo in space

This is a list of amazing women who have traveled into space! It's sorted by when they first flew. The very first women in space were from Russia. Valentina Tereshkova made history in 1963 as the first woman to go to space. This was very early in human space travel. It took almost twenty years before another woman, Svetlana Savitskaya, flew.

By the end of the 1980s, it became more common to see women in space. By 2019, about 12% of all space travelers were women. As of April 2022, 73 women had completed spaceflights.

History of Women in Space
Women Who Have Traveled to Space
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History of Women in Space

As of May 2023, 73 women have traveled to space out of 634 total space travelers. These women come from different countries. One woman each is from France, Italy, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, and the United Kingdom. Canada, China, and Japan each have two women who have flown to space. Six women are from the Soviet Union or Russia. The United States has had the most, with 56 women in space.

The time it took for a country to send its first woman into space after its first man varied a lot. For example, the first astronauts from Britain, South Korea, and Iran were actually women! In Russia, there was a two-year gap between the first man in space (Vostok 1) and the first woman (Vostok 6). For the United States, it was 22 years between the first man (on Freedom 7) and the first woman (on STS-7). China had an eight-and-a-half-year gap, and Italy had about a twelve-year gap.

There was a 19-year wait between the first two women in space. Both were Russian cosmonauts. Even though Russia sent the first two women, only six Russian or Soviet women have flown to space. However, women from Britain, France, Italy, Iran (who also had US citizenship), and South Korea have flown as part of the Russian space programs. Similarly, women from Canada, Japan, and America have flown with the US space program. The first and second American women in space flew just one year apart. The same happened for the first and second Chinese women in space.

Women Who Have Traveled to Space

#	Name Birth date	Country	Comment	Missions (Launch date)
1	Valentina Tereshkova Mar. 6, 1937	Soviet Union	First woman in space. Only woman to make a solo spaceflight.	Vostok 6 (Jun. 16, 1963)
2	Svetlana Savitskaya Aug. 8, 1948	Soviet Union	First woman to fly on a space station (Salyut 7, 1982). First woman to perform a spacewalk (Jul. 25, 1984). First woman to make two spaceflights.	Soyuz T-5 (Jul. 19, 1982) Soyuz T-12 (Jul. 17, 1984)
3	Sally Ride May 26, 1951 died Jul. 23, 2012	United States	First American woman in space.	STS-7 (Jun. 18, 1983) STS-41-G (Oct. 5, 1984)
4	Judith Resnik Apr. 5, 1949 died Jan. 28, 1986	United States	Fourth woman in space, second American woman in space. First Jewish woman in space.	STS-41-D (Aug. 30, 1984) STS-51-L (Jan. 28, 1986)
5	Kathryn D. Sullivan Oct. 3, 1951	United States	Second woman to perform a spacewalk. (Oct. 11, 1984).	STS-41-G (Oct. 5, 1984) STS-31 (Apr. 24, 1990) STS-45 (Mar. 24, 1992)
6	Anna Lee Fisher Aug. 24, 1949	United States	First mother in space.	STS-51-A (Nov. 8, 1984)
7	Margaret Rhea Seddon Nov. 8, 1947	United States		STS-51-D (Apr. 12, 1985) STS-40 (Jun. 5, 1991) STS-58 (Oct. 18, 1993)
8	Shannon Lucid Jan. 14, 1943	United States	First American woman to fly on a space station (Mir, 1996). First Chinese-born woman in space. First woman to make a third, a fourth and a fifth spaceflight.	STS-51-G (Jun. 17, 1985) STS-34 (Oct. 18, 1989) STS-43 (Aug. 2, 1991) STS-58 (Oct. 18, 1993) STS-76/79 (Mar. 22, 1996)
9	Bonnie J. Dunbar Mar. 3, 1949	United States		STS-61-A (Oct. 30, 1985) STS-32 (Jan. 9, 1990) STS-50 (Jun. 25, 1992) STS-71 (Jun. 27, 1995) STS-89 (Jan. 22, 1998)
10	Mary L. Cleave Feb. 5, 1947	United States		STS-61-B (Nov. 26, 1985) STS-30 (May 4, 1989)
11	Ellen S. Baker Apr. 27, 1953	United States		STS-34 (Oct. 18, 1989) STS-50 (Jun. 25, 1992) STS-71 (Jun. 27, 1995)
12	Kathryn C. Thornton Aug. 17, 1952	United States	Third woman to walk in space. First woman to make multiple EVAs (May 14–15, 1992, Dec. 6, 1993, Dec. 8, 1993)	STS-33 (Nov. 22, 1989) STS-49 (May 7, 1992) STS-61 (Dec. 2, 1993) STS-73 (Oct. 20, 1995)
13	Marsha Ivins Apr. 15, 1951	United States		STS-32 (Jan. 9, 1990) STS-46 (Jul. 31, 1992) STS-62 (Mar. 4, 1994) STS-81 (Jan. 12, 1997) STS-98 (Feb. 7, 2001)
14	Linda M. Godwin Jul. 2, 1952	United States	Fourth woman to walk in space (March 27, 1996, Dec. 10, 2001)	STS-37 (Apr. 5, 1991) STS-59 (Apr. 9, 1994) STS-76 (Mar. 22, 1996) STS-108 (Dec. 5, 2001)
15	Helen Sharman May 30, 1963	United Kingdom	First British citizen in space. Second woman to fly on a space station (Mir, 1991).	Soyuz TM-12/TM-11 (May 18, 1991)
16	Tamara E. Jernigan May 7, 1959	United States	Fifth woman to walk in space (May 30, 1999)	STS-40 (Jun. 5, 1991) STS-52 (Oct. 22, 1992) STS-67 (Mar. 2, 1995) STS-80 (Nov. 19, 1996) STS-96 (May 27, 1999)
17	Millie Hughes-Fulford Dec. 21, 1945 died Feb. 2, 2021	United States	First female payload specialist.	STS-40 (Jun. 5, 1991)
18	Roberta Bondar Dec. 4, 1945	Canada	First Canadian woman in space. First Ukrainian Canadian woman in space.	STS-42 (Jan. 22, 1992)
19	Nancy Jan Davis Nov. 1, 1953	United States	Went to space with her husband, Mark C. Lee in 1992. They were the first married couple to go to space together.	STS-47 (Sep. 12, 1992) STS-60 (Feb. 3, 1994) STS-85 (Aug. 7, 1997)
20	Mae Jemison Oct. 17, 1956	United States	First African American woman in space	STS-47 (Sep. 12, 1992)
21	Susan J. Helms Feb. 26, 1958	United States	The sixth woman to walk in space (March 11, 2001). The longest spacewalk by a woman (8h 56m).	STS-54 (Jan. 13, 1993) STS-64 (Sep. 9, 1994) STS-78 (Jun. 20, 1996) STS-101 (May 19, 2000) STS-102/105 (Mar. 8, 2001)
22	Ellen Ochoa May 10, 1958	United States	First Hispanic woman in space.	STS-56 (Apr. 8, 1993) STS-66 (Nov. 3, 1994) STS-96 (May 27, 1999) STS-110 (Apr. 8, 2002)
23	Janice E. Voss Oct. 8, 1956 died Feb. 6, 2012	United States		STS-57 (Jun. 21, 1993) STS-63 (Feb. 3, 1995) STS-83 (Apr. 4, 1997) STS-94 (Jul. 1, 1997) STS-99 (Feb. 11, 2000)
24	Nancy J. Currie Dec. 29, 1958	United States		STS-57 (Jun. 21, 1993) STS-70 (Jul. 13, 1995) STS-88 (Dec. 4, 1998) STS-109 (Mar. 1, 2002)
25	Chiaki Mukai May 6, 1952	Japan	First Japanese woman and first Asian woman in space.	STS-65 (Jul. 8, 1994) STS-95 (Oct. 29, 1998)
26	Yelena V. Kondakova Mar. 30, 1957	Russia	First Russian woman to travel in 2 different spacecraft. First Russian woman to travel on the Space Shuttle.	Soyuz TM-20 (Oct. 3, 1994) STS-84 (May 15, 1997)
27	Eileen Collins Nov. 19, 1956	United States	First female shuttle pilot and shuttle commander.	STS-63 (Feb. 3, 1995) STS-84 (May 15, 1997) STS-93 (Jul. 23, 1999) STS-114 (Jul. 26, 2005)
28	Wendy B. Lawrence Jul. 2, 1959	United States		STS-67 (Mar. 2, 1995) STS-86 (Sep. 25, 1997) STS-91 (Jun. 2, 1998) STS-114 (Jul. 26, 2005)
29	Mary E. Weber Aug. 24, 1962	United States		STS-70 (Jul. 13, 1995) STS-101 (May 19, 2000)
30	Catherine Coleman Dec. 14, 1960	United States		STS-73 (Oct. 20, 1995) STS-93 (Jul. 23, 1999) Soyuz TMA-20 (Dec. 15, 2010)
31	Claudie Haigneré May 13, 1957	France	First Frenchwoman in space.	Soyuz TM-24/TM-23 (Aug. 17, 1996) Soyuz TM-33/32 (Oct. 21, 2001)
32	Susan Still Kilrain Oct. 24, 1961	United States	Second female shuttle pilot.	STS-83 (Apr. 4, 1997) STS-94 (Jul. 1, 1997)
33	Kalpana Chawla Jul. 1, 1961 died Feb. 1, 2003	United States	First Asian American (of Indian origin) woman in space. First Hindu woman in space.	STS-87 (Nov. 19, 1997) STS-107 (Jan. 16, 2003)
34	Kathryn P. Hire Aug. 26, 1959	United States		STS-90 (Apr. 17, 1998) STS-130 (Feb. 8, 2010)
35	Janet L. Kavandi Jul. 17, 1959	United States		STS-91 (Jun. 2, 1998) STS-99 (Feb. 11, 2000) STS-104 (Jul. 12, 2001)
36	Julie Payette Oct. 20, 1963	Canada	Second Canadian woman in space. First French Canadian woman in space. Later became Governor General of Canada.	STS-96 (May 27, 1999) STS-127 (Jul. 15, 2009)
37	Pamela Melroy Sep. 17, 1961	United States	Second female shuttle commander. Appointed Deputy Administrator of NASA June 21, 2021.	STS-92 (Oct. 11, 2000) STS-112 (Oct. 7, 2002) STS-120 (Oct. 23, 2007)
38	Peggy Whitson Feb. 9, 1960	United States	Most time in space for a US astronaut (675 days). Seventh woman to walk in space (Aug. 16, 2002, Nov. 9, 2007, Nov. 20, 2007, Nov. 24, 2007, Dec. 18, 2007, Jan. 30, 2007, Jan. 6, 2017, Mar. 30, 2017, May 12, 2017, May 23, 2017). Most spacewalks (10) and most time spent on spacewalks (60 hrs 21 min) of all female space travelers. First female ISS commander (ISS Expedition 16).	STS-111/113 (Jun. 5, 2002) Soyuz TMA-11 (Oct. 10, 2007) Soyuz MS-03/04 (Nov. 17, 2016) Axiom Mission 2 (May 21, 2023)
39	Sandra Magnus Oct. 30, 1964	United States		STS-112 (Oct. 7, 2002) STS-126/119 (Nov. 14, 2008) STS-135 (Jul. 8, 2011)
40	Laurel B. Clark Mar. 10, 1961 died Feb. 1, 2003	United States		STS-107 (Jan. 16, 2003)
41	Stephanie Wilson Sep. 27, 1966	United States		STS-121 (Jul. 4, 2006) STS-120 (Oct. 23, 2007) STS-131 (Apr. 5, 2010)
42	Lisa Nowak May 10, 1963	United States		STS-121 (Jul. 4, 2006)
43	Heidemarie M. Stefanyshyn-Piper Feb. 7, 1963	United States	Eighth woman to walk in space (Sep. 12, 2006, Sep. 15, 2006, Nov. 18-19, 2008, Nov. 20-21, 2008, Nov. 22-23, 2008). First Ukrainian American woman in space.	STS-115 (Sep. 9, 2006) STS-126 (Nov. 14, 2008)
44	Anousheh Ansari Sep. 12, 1966	Iran / United States	Fourth space tourist and first female space tourist. First Iranian and first Muslim woman in space.	Soyuz TMA-9/8 (Sep. 18, 2006)
45	Sunita Williams Sep. 19, 1965	United States	Ninth woman to walk in space (Dec. 16, 2006, Jan. 31, 2007, Feb. 4, 2007, Feb. 8, 2007, Aug. 30, 2012, Sep. 5, 2012).	STS-116/117 (Dec. 9, 2006) Soyuz TMA-05M (Jul. 15, 2012)
46	Joan Higginbotham Aug. 3, 1964	United States		STS-116 (Dec. 9, 2006)
47	Tracy Caldwell Dyson Aug. 14, 1969	United States	Eleventh woman to walk in space (Aug. 7, 2010, Aug. 11, 2010, Aug. 16, 2010). First astronaut born after Apollo 11 flight.	STS-118 (Aug. 8, 2007) Soyuz TMA-18 (Apr. 2, 2010) Soyuz MS-25 (Mar. 23, 2024)
48	Barbara Morgan Nov. 28, 1951	United States	First educator astronaut. Originally selected for the Teacher in Space Project.	STS-118 (Aug. 8, 2007)
49	Yi So-yeon Jun. 2, 1978	South Korea	First Korean in space.	Soyuz TMA-12 (Apr. 8, 2008)
50	Karen L. Nyberg Oct. 7, 1969	United States		STS-124 (May 31, 2008) Soyuz TMA-09M (May 28, 2013)
51	K. Megan McArthur Aug. 30, 1971	United States		STS-125 (May 11, 2009) SpaceX Crew-2 (Apr. 23, 2021)
52	Nicole P. Stott Nov. 11, 1962	United States	Tenth woman to walk in space (Sep. 1–2, 2009).	STS-128/129 (Aug. 28, 2009) STS-133 (Feb. 24, 2011)
53	Dorothy Metcalf-Lindenburger May 15, 1975	United States	First Space Camp alumna to become an astronaut.	STS-131 (Apr. 5, 2010)
54	Naoko Yamazaki Dec. 27, 1970	Japan		STS-131 (Apr. 5, 2010)
55	Shannon Walker Jun. 4, 1965	United States	First Native Houstonian to go aboard the International Space Station. She returned to space for her second long duration mission on November 15, 2020, onboard SpaceX Crew-1.	Soyuz TMA-19 (Jun. 15, 2010) SpaceX Crew-1 (Nov. 15, 2020)
56	Liu Yang Oct. 6, 1978	China	First Chinese woman in space.	Shenzhou 9 (Jun. 16, 2012), Shenzhou 14 (Jun. 5, 2022)
57	Wang Yaping Jan. 27, 1980	China	First Chinese woman on long duration expedition. Sixteenth woman to walk in space (November 7, 2021) during Shenzhou 13. First Chinese female astronaut to walk in space.	Shenzhou 10 (Jun. 11, 2013) Shenzhou 13 (Oct. 15, 2021)
58	Yelena Serova Apr. 22, 1976	Russia	Member of ISS Expedition 41. First Russian woman to visit the ISS.	Soyuz TMA-14M (Sep. 25, 2014)
59	Samantha Cristoforetti Apr. 26, 1977	Italy	ESA Astronaut. First Italian woman in space and first Italian woman on ISS. Expedition 42/43.	Soyuz TMA-15M (Nov. 23, 2014) SpaceX Crew-4 (Apr. 27, 2022)
60	Kathleen Rubins Oct. 14, 1978	United States	Twelfth woman to walk in space (Aug. 19, 2016, Sep. 01, 2016) during ISS Expedition 48.	Soyuz MS-01 (Jul. 6, 2016) Soyuz MS-17 (Oct. 14, 2020)
61	Serena Auñón-Chancellor Apr. 9, 1976	United States		Soyuz MS-09 (Jun. 6, 2018)
62	Anne McClain Jun. 7, 1979	United States	Thirteenth woman to walk in space (Mar. 22, 2019, Apr. 08, 2019) during ISS Expedition 59.	Soyuz MS-11 (Dec. 3, 2018)
63	Beth Moses May 29, 1969	United States	Virgin Galactic Chief instructor. The first woman to make a spaceflight (US Department of Defense classification i.e. >50 mi (80.47 km)) on a commercially launched vehicle.	VSS Unity VF-01 (Feb. 22, 2019) Virgin Galactic Unity 22 (July 11, 2021) Virgin Galactic Unity 25 (May 25, 2023) Galactic 02 (Aug. i0. 2023) Galactic 03 (Sept. 08, 2023) Galactic 04 (Oct. 06, 2023)
64	Christina Koch Feb. 2, 1979	United States	Fourteenth woman to walk in space (Mar 29, 2019) during ISS Expedition 59. Jointly with Jessica Meir, became the first two women to undertake an all-female spacewalk during ISS Expedition 61. She holds the record for the longest continuous time in space for a female (328 days).	Soyuz MS-12/13 (Mar. 14, 2019)
65	Jessica Meir Jul. 15, 1977	United States / Sweden	Fifteenth woman to walk in space (Oct 18, 2019) during ISS Expedition 61. Jointly with Christina Hammock Koch, became the first two women to undertake an all-female spacewalk.	Soyuz MS-15 (Sep. 25, 2019)
66	Sirisha Bandla C. 1988	United States	Vice President of Government Affairs and Research Operations, Virgin Galactic.	Virgin Galactic Unity 22 (Jul. 11, 2021)
67	Wally Funk Feb. 1, 1939	United States	Part of the Mercury 13 group. First crewed commercial flight of New Shepard. Oldest woman to fly to Space (82 years, 170 days).	Blue Origin NS-16 (Jul. 20, 2021)
68	Sian Proctor Mar. 26, 1970	United States	First female commercial astronaut spaceship pilot. First African-American commercial astronaut. First African-American woman to pilot a spacecraft.	Inspiration4 (Sep. 16, 2021)
69	Hayley Arceneaux Dec. 9, 1991	United States	St. Jude Children's Research Hospital employee and bone cancer survivor. First person in space with a Prosthesis.	Inspiration4 (Sep. 16, 2021)
70	Yulia Peresild Sep. 5, 1984	Russia	First actress in space, filming for the 2023 film The Challenge aboard the International Space Station.	Soyuz MS-19 (Oct. 5, 2021)
71	Audrey Powers	United States	Vice president of mission and flight operations of Blue Origin.	Blue Origin NS-18 (Oct. 13, 2021)
72	Kayla Barron Sep. 19, 1987	United States		SpaceX Crew-3 (Nov. 10, 2021)
73	Laura Shepard Churchley	United States	Daughter of Alan Shepard, the first American in space.	Blue Origin NS-19 (Dec. 11, 2021)
74	Sharon Hagle	United States	With husband Marc Hagle, became the first married couple to launch into space on a commercial space vehicle.	Blue Origin NS-20 (March 31, 2022)
75	Jessica Watkins May 14, 1988	United States	First African-American woman on a long Duration mission.	SpaceX Crew-4 (Apr. 27, 2022)
76	Katya Echazarreta	United States / Mexico		Blue Origin NS-21 (June 04, 2022)
77	Vanessa O'Brien Dec. 2, 1964	United States / United Kingdom	First woman to reach extremes on Earth (Mount Everest), sea (Challenger Deep) and Air (passing the Kármán line into space.)	Blue Origin NS-22 (August 4, 2022)
78	Sara Sabry	Egypt		Blue Origin NS-22 (August 4, 2022)
79	Nicole Aunapu Mann Jun. 27, 1977	United States	First Native American woman in space.	SpaceX Crew-5 (Oct. 5, 2022)
80	Anna Kikina Aug.27, 1984	Russia	First Russian cosmonaut to fly a Crew Dragon.	SpaceX Crew-5 (Oct. 5, 2022)
81	Rayyanah Barnawi Sep., 1988	Saudi Arabia	First female Saudi astronaut in space.	Axiom Mission 2 (May 21, 2023)
82	Jamila Gilbert	United States	Senior manager, internal communications. Virgin Galactic	Virgin Galactic Unity 25 (May 25, 2023)
83	Kelly Latimer	United States	Pilot. Virgin Galactic	Galactic 02 (Aug. 10, 2023) Galactic 04 (Oct. 06, 2023) Galactic 05 (Nov. 02, 2023)
84	Keisha Schahaff 1977	Antigua and Barbuda	Together with Anastatia Mayers, first citizens from Antigua & Barbuda and the first mother and daughter duo to fly to space.	Galactic 02 (Aug. 10, 2023)
85	Anastatia Mayers September 27, 2004	Antigua and Barbuda	Together with Keisha Schahaff, first citizens from Antigua & Barbuda and the first mother and daughter duo to fly to space. Youngest woman to fly to space (18 years, 318 days).	Galactic 02 (Aug. 10, 2023)
86	Jasmin Moghbeli Jun. 24, 1983	United States		SpaceX Crew-7 (Aug. 26, 2023)
87	Loral O'Hara May 3, 1983	United States		Soyuz MS-24 (Sep. 15, 2023)
88	Namira Salim	Pakistan	First person from Pakistan to go into space.	Galactic 04 (Oct. 06, 2023)
89	Kellie Gerardi February 16, 1989	United States		Galactic 05 (Nov. 02, 2023)
90	Ketty Maisonrouge	Italy		Galactic 05 (Nov. 02, 2023)
91	Lina Borozdina	Ukraine / United States		Galactic 06 (Jan. 26, 2024)
92	Jeanette J. Epps Nov. 2, 1970	United States		SpaceX Crew-8 (Mar. 4, 2024)
93	Marina Vasilevskaya Sept. 14, 1990	Belarus		Soyuz MS-25/MS-24 (Mar. 23, 2024)