Dr. Sally Ride, the first American woman to travel into space, will be awarded a posthumous Presidential Medal of Freedom, President Barack Obama announced Monday.
Ride, who, at 32, was also the youngest astronaut launched into orbit by the United States when she first traveled on the space shuttle in 1983, left the National Aeronautics and Space Administration four years later to join Stanford University's Center for International Security and Arms Control and later focus on science education, with an emphasis on encouraging young women.
She was the only individual who served on both investigation panels for the Challenger and Columbia shuttle disasters.
Ride passed away July 23, 2012, of pancreatic cancer at age 61.
Her obituary, then subsequently her company and family, revealed that Ride was survived by a female life partner of 27 years.
"We remember Sally Ride not just as a national hero, but as a role model to generations of young women," Obama said in a statement released by the White House. "Sally inspired us to reach for the stars, and she advocated for a greater focus on the science, technology, engineering and math that would help us get there. Sally showed us that there are no limits to what we can achieve, and I look forward to welcoming her family to the White House as we celebrate her life and legacy."
The Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honor, is presented to individuals who have made especially meritorious contributions to the security or national interests of the United States, to world peace, or to cultural or other significant public or private endeavors.
The award ceremony will be held at the White House later this year.
NASA also said on Monday it will pay tribute to Ride by creating a new agency internship program in her name.
The Sally Ride Internship will help students from underserved backgrounds pursue a research interest at one of NASA's centers across the nation, a release from the agency said, providing as many as 10 internships in the spring and fall semesters of each school year.
The space agency as well said it will be renaming a camera aboard the International Space Station in Ride's honor, the Sally Ride EarthKAM.
Through her company, Sally Ride Science, hundreds of thousands of middle school students have participated in space research by using the EarthKAM to acquire images that correspond with their classroom investigations.
"Sally's impact on our nation and future generations of explorers is immeasurable," said NASA.
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