"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 first view of Earth. Just a spectacular view, and a chance to see our planet as a planet."
Sally Ride"All adventures, especially into new territory, are scary."
Sally Ride"Studying whether there's life on Mars or studying how the universe began, there's something magical about pushing back the frontiers of knowledge. That's something that is almost part of being human, and I'm certain that will continue."
Sally Ride"Science is fun. Science is curiosity. We all have natural curiosity. Science is a process of investigating. It's posing questions and coming up with a method. It's delving in."
Sally Ride"Rocket science is tough, and rockets have a way of failing."
Sally Ride"For whatever reason, I didn't succumb to the stereotype that science wasn't for girls. I got encouragement from my parents. I never ran into a teacher or a counselor who told me that science was for boys. A lot of my friends did."
Sally Ride"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!"
Sally Ride"The view of Earth is spectacular."
Sally Ride"The stars don't look bigger, but they do look brighter."
Sally Ride"When you're getting ready to launch into space, you're sitting on a big explosion waiting to happen."
Sally Ride"So most astronauts getting ready to lift off are excited and very anxious and worried about that explosion - because if something goes wrong in the first seconds of launch, there's not very much you can do."
Sally Ride"One thing I probably share with everyone else in the astronaut office is composure."
Sally Ride