Named in honor of Sally K. Ride, the first American woman to fly in space. From 1978 to 1987 Ride was a Space Shuttle astronaut, flying on two missions that launched scientific satellites. She has served the NASA administration, the National Research Council, and the U.S. Congress in both an advisory and administrative capacity. She has conducted studies of the Soviet Space Program and matters related to International Security and Arms Control. Ride is currently professor of physics and director of the California Space Institute at the University of California, San Diego, where she is actively involved in physics education and attracting and encouraging students to enter physics-related fields of study. Her research centers on free-electron lasers. (M 19698) _ _.