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Outlook: Zero-gravity highs and history-making lows

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Kathy Sullivan moon walk

26/11/2020 GMT

Zero-gravity highs and history-making lows

BBC World Service - Outlook, Zero-gravity highs and history-making lows

Kathy Sullivan is a former US astronaut who has made history both at sea and in space

In 1984, Kathy Sullivan made history as the first US woman to complete a spacewalk. Then earlier this year she became the first woman to reach the lowest known point in the ocean.

As a child Kathy Sullivan always dreamed of adventure, little did she know she would grow up to make history both in the depths of the ocean and in space. Kathy was one of Nasa's class of 1978, the first recruitment drive that brought women into its astronaut ranks. In 1984 she became the first US woman to complete a spacewalk and went on to take part in two more missions, including the 1990 launch of the Hubble Space Telescope. After leaving Nasa in 1993, she went on to serve as chief scientist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and later as its administrator. Last year - working with US adventurer Victor Vescovo - she made history once again, this time becoming the first woman to reach the lowest known point in the ocean.

Jenny Schauerte is a champion downhill skateboarder, she lives off adrenaline. Her skateboard has given her some of the best moments of her life and also helped her through some of the worst. Jenny was at the top of her game when her father died suddenly in 2017, she then lost her job and her flat, and was living in her van - for weeks she couldn’t even get out of bed. But she has some brilliant skating friends, she calls them her ‘Woolf Women’, they helped her get back on her feet and on the road again. Last year they completed a 10,000 km journey across Europe skating down spectacular mountain roads, around hair pin bends, sometimes reaching speeds of up to 50 miles per hour. A film has been made about their adventure, it's called ‘Woolf Women’ and was made by 2Dare2 Productions.

If you have been affected by Jenny’s story you can find advice on the BBC Action line: bbc.co.uk/actionline

Picture: Kathy Sullivan's spacewalk
Credit: NASA

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