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JWR VerifiedFounding RecordJWR-2026-000019

First Jewish Woman in Space

Record holder

Judith ResnikPerson

Record value

First Jewish woman to travel into outer space

Country represented: United StatesAchievement location: United StatesAchievement date: 30 August 1984Current record

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Verified by Jewish World RecordsHow we verify records

Judith A. Resnik official NASA portrait, 1978

Judith A. Resnik, official NASA portrait, 21 September 1978.NASA / Wikimedia CommonsSourcePublic domain

Official record definition

The first woman who satisfies the JWR Jewish Eligibility Standard to travel into outer space on an orbital human spaceflight.

Measurement methodology

Historical human-spaceflight chronology plus Jewish-eligibility verification

Measurement point: Orbital human spaceflight aboard STS-41D / Space Shuttle Discovery

Record story

Judith Resnik became the first Jewish woman to travel into outer space on 30 August 1984. The record was achieved during her flight as a mission specialist on the maiden voyage of the Space Shuttle Discovery, mission STS-41D. According to official NASA records, the orbital human spaceflight launched on 30 August 1984 and concluded with its landing on 5 September 1984.

NASA biographical material states that Resnik was "brought up in the Jewish religion". Contemporary reporting by the Jewish Telegraphic Agency before the mission documented her Jewish family background and identified her as the first Jewish woman astronaut. Reporting after the flight explicitly confirmed her as the "first Jewish woman to go into space". Subsequent analysis found no earlier Jewish woman space traveller, while also placing her as the second Jew in space after Boris Volynov, which confirms the gender-specific nature of this record.

Media

How JWR verified this record

Verification date
30 August 2026
Verification standard
JWR Verification Standard 1.0

Achievement evidence

NASA records Judith A. Resnik as a mission specialist on STS-41D, launched 30 August 1984 and landed 5 September 1984. NASA biographical material states that Resnik was brought up in the Jewish religion. Contemporary Jewish Telegraphic Agency reporting before the mission documents her Jewish family background and identifies her as the first Jewish woman astronaut.

Superiority evidence

Enhanced FIRST review found no earlier Jewish woman space traveler. JTA reporting after the flight explicitly identifies Judith Resnik as the first Jewish woman to go into space; later Jewish spaceflight chronology places her after Boris Volynov, confirming the gender-specific FIRST.

Jewish Eligibility — Verified by JWR

Jewish eligibility verification

Evidence establishing that the holder qualifies as Jewish for JWR purposes.

  • The Crew of the Space Shuttle Challenger STS-51L Mission — Judith A. Resnik biography — NASA
  • Behind the Headlines: First Jewish Woman Astronaut Judith Resnik Ready for Liftoff — Jewish Telegraphic Agency

Achievement / record verification

Evidence establishing that the holder achieved the result and holds the record as defined.

  • STS-41D — NASA

Superiority / counter-candidate verification

Evidence comparing the result with other candidates relevant to the record claim.

  • Mezuzahs in Space — Jewish Telegraphic Agency

Jewish eligibility, achievement and superiority evidence retain their separate classifications and are never merged. Context and provenance are not presented as proof of the achievement. Restricted evidence and internal research notes are never published. Learn more about the seven-stage process on the verification page.

Sources & Verification

History

  1. Verified

    Verified according to JWR Verification Standard 1.0.

  2. Publishedv1

    Published to the official JWR registry.

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