Share to ClassroomOldest Woman in Space Dies
Wally Funk was the oldest woman ever to fly into space. She died on Wednesday at age 87. A friend said Funk fell down many times. She also had a bad leg infection. Funk was born in 1939. She loved flying very much.
In the 1960s, Funk joined a special test for women pilots. The test was as hard as the test for men at NASA. NASA is the US space team. Thirteen women passed. People called them the Mercury 13. But NASA did not take women until 1978. Funk asked many times, but they said no.
Funk never stopped flying. In 2021, at age 82, she went to space at last. She flew on a Blue Origin rocket. For a short time, she was the oldest person in space. She is still the oldest woman in space. Funk once said, I'll be flying till I die.
