Ellen Ochoa was the first Hispanic-American female astronaut. She flew on four space shuttle missions. In 1993, Ochoa made her first trip into space. She flew aboard the shuttle Discovery. Its mission was to study the effects of solar activity on Earth's atmosphere. As part of the study, Ochoa released a research satellite using the shuttle's robotic arm. Her next spaceflight was aboard Atlantis in 1994. This time, she used the robotic arm to retrieve a research satellite. Ochoa participated in Discovery's mission to the International Space Station (ISS) in 1999. She returned to the ISS on Atlantis in 2002. During these missions, Ochoa logged nearly 1,000 hours in space. Ochoa is a private pilot. And she is a classical flutist. She even played her flute aboard the space shuttle. Ochoa often travels to schools to speak to students about her experiences in space. She encourages them to set big goals. "Don't be afraid to reach for the stars," she says. "I believe a good education can take you anywhere on Earth and beyond." Source: Scholastic

These books are available from the Mercer Country Library:

  • Kamala Harris: Rooted in Justice by Nikki Grimes

  • Little Melba and Her Big Trombone by Katheryn Russell-Brown

  • Parker Looks Up: An Extraordinary Moment by Parker Curry

  • I Dissent: Ruth Bader Ginsburg Makes Her Mark by Debbie Levy

  • Rosie Revere, Engineer by Andrea Beaty

  • Under My Hijab by Hena Khan

  • Sonia Sotomayor: A Judge Grows in the Bronx by Jonah Winter

  • Brave Girl: Clara and the Shirtwaist Makers' Strike of 1909 by Michelle Markel

  • Shaking Things Up: 14 Young Women Who Changed the World by Susan Hood

  • She Persisted by Chelsea Clinton



  • Sulwe by Lupita Nyong'o

  • Shark Lady: The True Story of How Eugenie Clark became the Ocean's Most Fearless Scientist by Jess Keating

  • Mae among the Stars by Roda Ahmed

  • Who Says Women Can't Be Doctors?: The Story of Elizabeth Blackwell by Tanya Lee Stone

  • Harlem’s Little Blackbird by Renee Watson

  • Just Like Beverly by Vicki Conrad

  • Malala’s Magic Pencil by Malala Yousafzai

  • Planting Stories: The Life of Librarian and Storyteller Pura Belpré by Anika Denise



  • Frida Kahlo and Her Animalitos by Monica Brown

  • Wilma Unlimited: How Wilma Rudolph became the World's Fastest

  • Woman by Kathleen Krull

  • The Girl Who Thought in Pictures by Julia Finley Mosca

  • Before She Was Harriet by Lesa Cline-Ransome

  • Celia Cruz, Queen of Salsa by Veronica Chambers

  • A Computer Called Katherine by Suzanne Slade

  • A Is for Awesome: 23 Iconic Women Who Changed the World by Eva Chen

  • Gloria Takes a Stand by Jessica M. Rinker

  • I Am Sonia Sotomayor by Brad Meltzer

  • Secret Engineer: How Emily Roebling Built the Brooklyn Bridge by Rachel Dougherty




  • Voice of Freedom: Fannie Lou Hamer, Spirit of the Civil Rights Movement by Carole Boston Weatherford

  • Here Come the Girl Scouts! by Shana Corey

  • Dolores Huerta: A Hero to Migrant Workers by Sarah E. Casilla Warren

  • Buffalo Bird Girl by S. D. Nelson

  • Yayoi Kusama: From Here to Infinity by Sarah J. S. Suzuki

  • The Youngest Marcher by Cynthia Levinson

  • Red Bird Sings by Gina Capaldi

  • Who Says Women Can't Be Computer Programmers?: The Story of Ada Lovelace by Tanya Lee Stone