Sally Ride Science at UC San Diego

10/02/2026

"Discovery," a new musical about NASA's astronaut corps in the wake of the 1986 Challenger disaster, has premiered at Michigan State University. The production follows Sally Ride and other astronauts as they navigate the tragedy, and charts the agency's return to space with the 1988 launch of shuttle Discovery. The production, with music by Dan Gibson and lyrics by Alex Higgin-Houseris, is a collaboration between Michigan State University Department of Theatre and Wharton Center, run through the New Musical Laboratory.

Michigan State University students and Broadway veterans stage a new musical about Sally Ride and NASA's post-Challenger astronauts in just two weeks. In collaboration with New Musical Laboratory, the show is constantly changing, giving actors and producers a unique experience.

10/01/2026

On Oct. 1, 1984, five of the seven crew members of NASA mission STS-41G prepared to board T-38 jets to fly to NASA Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The crew would blast off a few days later aboard shuttle Challenger on what was Sally Ride’s second spaceflight and the first space mission with two female crew members. Shown are, from left, Ride, Commander Robert Crippen, Kathy Sullivan, David Leetsma and Jon McBride. https://www.nasa.gov/mission/sts-41g/ NASA photo

09/30/2026

Enrollment is now open for inspiring fall STEM courses from Sally Ride Science! In "2D & 3D Game Programming," offered Oct. 21, middle schoolers will get hands-on experience designing and creating their own videogames. The initial courses, for grades K-8, will be held in Imperial Beach. From UC San Diego Pre-College Programs: https://go.ucsd.edu/4cVQE3O

09/29/2026

NASA astronaut Jessica Watkins, commander of NASA's SpaceX Crew-13 mission, waves from a T-38 jet after arriving Saturday at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Watkins and her crewmates — NASA's Luke Delaney, Joshua Kutryk of Canada and Sergey Teteryatnikov of Russia — are scheduled to blast off for the International Space Station on Thursday. https://tinyurl.com/mwy3msuv NASA photo/Kim Shiflett

09/28/2026

NASA has announced that astronaut Kayla Barron (third from left) will serve as commander and Chris Birch (second from left) will be the pilot for the SpaceX Crew-14 mission to the International Space Station, set to launch in spring 2027. Joining them will be Arutyun Kiviryan of Russia and Makoto Suwa of Japan. Barron, a commander in the US Navy, flew in space once before, in 2021. It will be the first spaceflight for Birch, who earned a doctorate in biological engineering from MIT and was a competitive track cyclist on the US national team. https://tinyurl.com/2hnb84as NASA photo

09/25/2026

Before Megan McArthur became an astronaut and flew on two space missions, she earned her doctorate at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, which is part of UC San Diego, home of Sally Ride Science. McArthur returned to campus this week as keynote speaker for the Scripps Student Symposium. In a Q&A, she talked about her experiences in space and her love of sharing science with the public. Since retiring from NASA in 2025, she has been chief science officer at Space Center Houston. Read McArthur's Q&A: https://go.ucsd.edu/4hsYmE1 NASA photo

09/24/2026

Check out new fall STEM courses from Sally Ride Science!

09/24/2026

NASA's first six women astronaut candidates underwent the same grueling training as their male counterparts. In this 1978 photo, Sally Ride gets ready for a "drop-and-drag" exercise, simulating being dragged through the water by a parachute, in Florida's Biscayne Bay. After she was dropped from a 15-foot platform, a boat pulled her through the water until she stabilized herself and released her parachute straps. https://buff.ly/A4tbJbV NASA photo

09/23/2026

Sally Ride Science is launching Fall STEM Courses!

🍂🔬 Fall STEM courses are here! 🚀✨

Enrollment is NOW OPEN for exciting hands-on Sally Ride Science courses!

Give your young scientist the opportunity to explore, create, experiment, and discover!

View courses & enroll through the link in our bio!

09/23/2026

During , we celebrate the contributions of NASA astronaut Dr. Frank Rubio, who was chosen in June as one of four crewmembers for NASA's Artemis III mission. He holds the record for longest U.S. space mission – 371 days, starting in September 2022. Rubio, whose family is from El Salvador, graduated from West Point in 1998 and became a medical doctor in 2010. Before medical school, he flew more than 1,100 hours as a US Army helicopter pilot. https://www.nasa.gov/people/frank-rubio/ NASA photo