On Monday, Ride died at the age of 61, ‘‘Sally was a national hero and a powerful role model,”President Barack Obama said in a statement. “She inspired generations of young girls to reach for the stars.”

　　Ride became interested in space when she was a kid. “If you asked me when I was 12 whether I wanted to be an astronaut ,I’m sure I wou1d have said yes,” she said in a 2010 interview . “ But I didn’t even think about that as a possible career.”

　　After studying physics in college and graduate school, Ride got her chance. She was accepted into NASA’s astronaut training program in 1978, and then chosen to be the first American female in space. In 1983, she blasted into space aboard the Challenger shuttle.“There is no amusement park ride on the Earth that even comes so close,” she said.

　　Ride returned to space on the Challenger a second time in1984 . Between the two missions, she spent a total of 343 hours in orbit. After that, she remained involved with the space program and also worked to share her passion for science with kids. She co-authored six science books for children , and started her own science education company.

　　Ride knew that she he1d a unique place in history . “ I realized how important it was for a woman to break that barrier and open the door for other women to be able to do the same exciting things that the men had been doing,” she said.

【2016四川省岳池县高考英语阅读理解一轮选练（5）及参考答案】相关文章：

★ 常熟市2014高考英阅读理解语一轮（暑假）训练题（1）及答案

★ 重庆市2014高考英语阅读理解一轮（精品）训练题（17）附答案

★ 辽宁省辽阳市2014高考英语单项选择一轮（暑假）训练（2）附答案

★ 备战2016年高考英语第一轮复习的七大方法

★ 湖南省岳阳市2014高考英语一轮单项选择训练题（5）及答案

★ 安徽省淮南市2014高考英语一轮单项选择及文章训练（1）及答案

★ 安徽省淮南市2014高考英语一轮单项选择及文章训练（12）及答案

★ 2014届高考英语一轮复习必修3参考答案（外研版）

★ 浙江省湖州市2014高考英语完形填空一轮（暑假）精炼（4）含答案

★ 浙江省湖州市2014高考英语阅读理解一轮（暑假）精炼（13）含答案