Judith Resnik, astronaut, born 1949

Judith Resnik, born April 5, 1949 in Akron, Ohio, was a veteran of two space shuttle flights.  She was the second US woman in space and the first Jewish astronaut ever.

Her first flight was on Discovery (STS-41-D) as mission specialist August-September 1984.  It was the first flight of the Discovery.

Her second flight was aboard Challenger (STS-51-L) as mission specialist on January 28, 1984.  Unfortunately, Resnik and the rest of the crew were lost when Challenger exploded shortly after lift-off.