Women In The Space Race Essay

n the 1950s and 60s, the space race became an integral part of the culture of the United States. Unfortunately for women at the time, sexism was also highly imbedded in our culture, which prevented women from initially participating in the space program. However, as time progressed, women paved the way for their involvement in NASA, and succeeded greatly as pioneers in the field.

The race for space began with Russia’s launch of Sputnik, the world’s first space satellite, on October 4, 1957. This launch caught the attention of the United States for multiple reasons; not only did this mean that Russia had surpassed the US in space technology, but it also signified that Russia had the capability of launching nuclear weapons at the

Because women generally weighed less, ate less, and therefore used less oxygen, their launch would take less fuel. Despite these concerns, it took much longer for women to venture into space. The screening for potential astronauts was referred to as the Lovelace Mercury Test, which consisted of 75 different extensive tests. While this initially began with military pilots, because women were not permitted to serve in the military, Lovelace had to look elsewhere to find potential candidates who were women. Of the 19 women who were tested, 13 passed, and oftentimes exceeded men in their results. For example, prospective astronauts were given “isolation tests” in which they were placed in chambers and subjected to sensory deprivation. In this scenario, the women flourished and felt calm, while the men were uncomfortable and complained more. These test results deemed women some of the most qualified candidates, but sexist attitudes prevailed and prevented their launch into space. US Government officials, including President Lyndon B. Johnson, felt that sending women into space would be viewed as a sign of weakness to other countries; to some, putting a woman in space was comparable to putting a chimp in space, and therefore, would not have been viewed as as much of an accomplishment as putting a man in space. Therefore, the decision was made to resort to only putting military pilots into

For one, many men were hesitant to welcome women, solely because these men had never worked alongside women in a professional manner. Many had little to no understanding of women’s issues and health, as menstruation and using the bathroom served as major obstacles. Another barrier that women faced in the space program relates to intersectionality, as all of the first women astronauts were white. In fact, it was not until 1992 when Mae Jemison became the first African-American woman to go into space. A final barrier, which serves less as a sign of inequality, and more of a sign of equality in the worst way, was the failure of the shuttle the Challenger. During this flight, Christa McAuliffe, who was chosen by NASA to pioneer the Teacher in Space program, as well as Judy Resnik from the 35 new guys, both died when the shuttle broke apart and crashed into the ocean. The sad truth that women had both died and lived in space proved their growing equality with men in the