This year marks the 40th anniversary of Sally Ride’s historic STS-7 mission and becoming the first American woman in space. 

To honor her, we’re hosting a day filled with conversations with extraordinary women in science, all-ages STEM activities and music. Come honor and celebrate the women and gender-expansive innovators in STEM and show us how you #ShineLikeSally!

The day kicks off with 'Sally Speaks,' 20-minute Ted Talk-style lectures from eight innovative women scientists:

  • Linda Dawson, former NASA engineer
  • Rachel Dempsey, Translational Research Institute for Space Health (TRISH)
  • Dana Karwas, Director of the Center for Collaborative Arts and Media (CCAM) at Yale University
  • Kavya Manyapu, NASA engineer
  • Dottie Metcalf-Lindenburger, astronaut
  • Harshita Nedunuri, Ultra Space Research Fellow at CCAM
  • Jaleesa Trapp, PhD Student, MIT Media Lab
  • Erika Wagner, Blue Origin Senior Director, Emerging Market Development 

Afterwards, engage with folks in the space industry at a Resource Fair focused on women in STEM, featuring groups like Women in Aviation, GEMS, SPIN and more or join the Bodies in Space Creative Workshop hosted by Yale Professors. Blue Origin's Club for the Future will be here to unveil their Postcards to Space mailbox, with an opportunity to write a postcard of your very own. And enjoy music throughout the day from DJ Wax Witch.


FREE with Museum Admission. 
This project received support from the Smithsonian American Women’s History Initiative Pool.

Event Details:

Date: Saturday, June 17, 2023
Time: 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM


Schedule

10:00 AM to 3:00 PM - Resource Fair
Engage with folks in the space industry at a Resource Fair focused on women in STEM, featuring groups like Women in Aviation, GEMS, SPIN and more.

10:30 AM - Ribbon Cutting for Blue Origin's Postcards to Space Mailbox

11:30 AM to 12:00 PM - Weekend Family Workshops
Hands-on, family crafts investigating science, engineering, and aerospace topics in fun and surprising ways.

11:00 AM to 2:40 PM - 'Sally Speaks' Lectures
Short, 20-minute Ted Talk-style lectures from eight innovative women scientists:

  • 11:00 AM - Linda Dawson
  • 11:40 PM - Kavya Manyapu
  • 12:10 PM - Erika Wagner
  • 12:40 PM - Dottie Metcalf-Lindenburger
  • 1:10 PM - Jaleesa Trapp
  • 1:40 PM - Rachel Dempsey
  • 2:10 PM - Dana Karwas and Harshita Nedunuri

1:00 PM to 2:30 PM - Weekend Family Workshops
Hands-on, family crafts investigating science, engineering, and aerospace topics in fun and surprising ways.

3:00 PM to 4:30 PM - Bodies in Space Creative Workshop (walk-ups welcome, all ages)
How do we design for off-planet life? What is its potential for the body in the environment of weightlessness? How do we design for the lived experience of space? In the Bodies in Space Workshop, participants will work with a small wooden figure and craft a space architecture model for the figure to inhabit. The architecture can be creative and break traditional gravity-bound rules! At the end of the Workshop, participants will perform a 30-second movement routine of their figure interacting with the space architecture. No art or design experience is necessary! Participants under age 14 must be accompanied by an adult. Hosted by Dana Karwas, Director of Yale's for Center Collaborative Arts and Media (CCAM) and professor at the Yale School of Architecture teaching courses on mechanized perception and design for the future of off-planet life, and Harshita Nedunuri, transdisciplinary designer and researcher and Ultra Space Research Fellow at CCAM. 


Event schedule is subject to change.
Note: The Spacesuit Design Challenge Fashion Show has been rescheduled to August 19.