Judith Resnik

Judith was a very smart woman.

She studied how electricity works. She also learned how to fly planes.

Judith worked for NASA. She helped build tools for space ships. One tool was a big robot arm. She used this arm in space.

Judith was a brave pilot. She went into space twice. She was a very important leader.

Judith Resnik was a brilliant engineer and a NASA astronaut.

She was very good at math and science. As a student, she earned a perfect score on her SAT exam. This was a very big achievement. She later earned a PhD, which is the highest degree a student can get. Her study was in electrical engineering.

Judith worked on many important projects. She helped design tools for Navy missiles. She also worked on research for how eyes see light. NASA chose her to be a mission specialist in 1978. She was part of the first group of astronauts to include women.

During her first flight, she used a robotic arm. This arm is called the Remote Manipulator System, or RMS. She also helped write the computer code for space missions. Her second flight was on the Space Shuttle Challenger.

Sadly, the shuttle broke apart shortly after it took off. Judith died during this accident. She was a pioneer for women in space.

Judith Resnik was a brilliant engineer and a NASA astronaut.

She was a pioneer for women in space exploration. Judith was the fourth woman to ever fly in space. She was also the first Jewish woman of any nationality to do so. She spent 145 hours orbiting the Earth. Her work helped open new paths for many others. She showed that science and space were for everyone.

Judith worked on many complex systems. She was an electrical engineer and a software engineer. This means she designed circuits and wrote computer code. During her training, she helped create the software for NASA missions. She also developed the Remote Manipulator System, or RMS. This is a robotic arm used on the Space Shuttle. She even worked on ways to deploy tethered satellites. Her skills made space travel safer and more useful.

Judith was a very talented student from a young age. She was born in Akron, Ohio, on April 5, 1949. People noticed how smart she was when she was in kindergarten. She even started elementary school a year early. She was the only woman in the country to get a perfect score on her SAT exam that year. She later earned a PhD in electrical engineering from the University of Maryland. This is the highest level of study a person can reach.

NASA selected Judith as a mission specialist in 1978. She was part of Astronaut Group 8. This was the first group to include women. She was one of only six women chosen from over 8,000 people. Her first mission was STS-41-D in August 1984. She flew on the Space Shuttle Discovery. During that flight, she operated the robotic arm. Her second mission was STS-51-L on the Space Shuttle Challenger.

Judith's life was full of many different interests. She was a trained pilot with near-perfect scores. She also played the classical piano very well. She loved to cook gourmet meals and go on car rallies. Her work in biomedical engineering helped us understand how eyes see light. Even though her life ended during the Challenger accident, her legacy lives on. We remember her as a star in the field of science.

Judith Arlene Resnik was a pioneering American engineer and NASA astronaut.

She achieved several historic milestones during her career in space exploration. Resnik was the fourth woman to fly in space. She was also the second American woman to do so. Most significantly, she was the first Jewish woman of any nationality to reach orbit. Throughout her time in space, she logged a total of 145 hours in orbit. Her technical expertise helped advance the capabilities of the Space Shuttle program.

Resnik was a highly skilled specialist in several engineering fields. She worked as an electrical engineer, a software engineer, and a biomedical engineer.

In her role as a mission specialist, she focused on complex orbital systems. She was responsible for developing software and operating procedures for NASA missions. One of her most important contributions was the Remote Manipulator System, or RMS. The RMS is a robotic arm used on the Space Shuttle to move objects. She also worked on deployment systems for tethered satellites. Her research helped define how spacecraft could be controlled manually during a mission.

Her academic journey was marked by exceptional achievement from a very young age. Born in Akron, Ohio, on April 5, 1949, Resnik showed early signs of intellectual brilliance. She entered elementary school a year earlier than usual. Before attending college, she achieved a perfect score on the SAT exam. She was only the 16th woman in United States history to reach that score. She later earned a Bachelor of Science in electrical engineering from Carnegie Mellon University. She eventually completed a PhD in electrical engineering from the University of Maryland. Her doctoral dissertation focused on the bleaching kinetics of visual pigments.

Resnik's professional career included significant work in both the private and public sectors. Before joining NASA, she worked for the RCA corporation. There, she served as a design engineer for Navy missile and radar projects. She developed electronics and software for NASA's sounding rocket and telemetry systems. She also worked as a research fellow at the National Institutes of Health. In this role, she contributed to biomedical engineering by researching the physiology of visual systems. This research looked at how electrical currents affect the retina of the eye.

In January 1978, NASA selected Resnik as part of Astronaut Group 8. This was a landmark group because it was the first to include women. Out of 8,029 applicants, only 29 men and six women were chosen.

Resnik trained intensely to prepare for the physical and technical demands of flight. She also became a licensed pilot, earning near-perfect scores on her flying exams. She even piloted the Northrop T-38 Talon, an aircraft used for astronaut training. Her colleagues described her as an excellent pilot and a "live wire."

Resnik completed two missions in space. Her first flight was the STS-41-D mission in August 1984. This was the twelfth Space Shuttle flight and the maiden voyage of the orbiter *Discovery*. During this mission, her duties included operating the robotic arm. Her second mission was STS-51-L, which took place in January 1986. This mission was flown aboard the Space Shuttle *Challenger*.

Tragically, the orbiter broke up shortly after liftoff. The accident resulted in the deaths of the crew, including Resnik, when the shuttle crashed into the ocean.

Beyond her technical achievements, Resnik had a wide range of personal interests. She was a talented classical pianist and a gourmet cook. She also enjoyed navigating in sports car rallies.

Her life was defined by a drive to master complex systems, whether in a laboratory, a cockpit, or a classroom. Today, she is remembered as a vital figure in the history of science and spaceflight. Her legacy continues through the many women who have followed her into the field of engineering and astronautics.