2023 Kennedy Space Center : 40 Years of Women in Space

Celebrating 40 Years of Women in Space trading cards were distributed in June 2023 at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex on Merritt Island, Florida. The series features six female NASA astronauts: Sally Ride, Anna Fisher, Kay Hire, Mae Jemison, Ellen Ochoa, and Kathryn Thornton.

The seven-card set commemorates the 40th anniversary of the first American woman in space. Sally Ride was a mission special on Space Shuttle Challenger mission STS-7 from June 18–24, 1983. Sally Ride is the third woman to fly in space after Soviet cosmonauts Valentina Tereshkova in 1963 and Svetlana Savitskaya in 1982.

The cards were available to attendees of the "40th Anniversary of Women in Space" events on June 15–16, 2023, at the Debus Conference Facility in Kennedy Space Center. The two-day discussion panel included astronauts Anna Fisher and Kathryn Thornton. "Chat with an Astronaut" Afternoon Tea events included astronauts Janet Kavandi, Fisher, and Thornton.

• First African American woman to travel into space (STS-47, Sep. 12, 1992) • Started college at 16 years old • Debated whether to attend medical school or become a professional dancer • Motivated by the lack of female astronauts in the Apollo missions • Fun fact: First astronaut to appear on Star Trek: The Next Generation • Founded The Jemison Group Inc., Dorothy Jemison Foundation, and BioSentient Corp.

• First Latina astronaut (STS-56, April 8, 1993) • Became first Latinx and second female director for NASA's Johnson Space Center in 2013 • Served as chair of National Science Board from 2016-2022 • Met husband while they both worked as research scientists at Ames Research Center • Gave birth to two sons during her career as an astronaut • Fun fact: she is a classical flutist