Meet Dr Mae Jemison, the First Black Woman to Travel Into Space

Official NASA portrait of Dr Mae Jemison ahead of mission STS-47.

Do you know those people who seem to fit three different lifetimes into one? Dr Mae Jemison is definitely one of them. Long before she made history on 12 September 1992 as the first Black woman to travel into space, she was already building a life that completely defied expectations. When she boarded Space Shuttle Endeavour in September 1992 for mission STS-47, it was just the latest chapter in an extraordinary journey.

By sixteen, she was at Stanford University studying chemical engineering and African studies. She went on to earn her medical degree from Cornell University, soon taking her skills to West Africa to manage healthcare for the Peace Corps in Sierra Leone and Liberia.

Dr Mae Jemison experiencing weightlessness during mission STS-47 in September 1992.

Science was only part of the story, though. Jemison was also a trained dancer who drew deep inspiration from the arts and television—especially Star Trek. Watching Nichelle Nichols play Lieutenant Uhura gave her a clear vision of what was possible, proving early on that space belonged to everyone.

That inspiration came full circle when NASA selected her for the astronaut programme in 1987 out of more than 2,000 applicants. When Endeavour finally launched five years later, she made sure to take her heritage along for the ride, packing an Alvin Ailey dance poster and traditional West African statuettes right alongside her flight gear.

Dr Mae Jemison undergoing suit checks prior to the STS-47 space shuttle launch.

During her eight days in orbit, she conducted life science experiments on bone cell research and motion sickness. Then, shortly after returning to Earth, she made another brilliant leap by guest-starring on Star Trek: The Next Generation, becoming the first actual astronaut to appear on the franchise.

Today, at 69 years old, she continues to look toward the future as an educator and leader of the 100 Year Starship initiative, working to ensure human interstellar travel becomes a reality within the next century.

Dr Mae Jemison on the flight deck of Space Shuttle Endeavour during orbit.