Rocket Launches in 1983

Spaceflight in 1983: Sally Ride flies on Challenger in June and becomes the first American woman in space, and in August Guion Bluford becomes the first African American in space. In September the escape tower of Soyuz T-10-1 pulls its crew clear seconds before the rocket explodes on the pad at Baikonur. Spacelab, Europe's laboratory module, makes its first flight in November.