Record-Breaking Travellers

Amelia Mary Earhart (1897–1937), the United States
In 1917, when she was 20, Amelia Earhart went to an air show with her father. While she was watching the planes circling in the sky, she found her interest. She wanted to be a pilot. The next day, she took her first trip on a plane and her career began. In 1932, she became famous as the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean. Five years later, she began the most ambitious project—to be the first woman to fly around the world. Tragically, she and her plane disappeared just before completing the journey. Where did she disappear? Nobody knows, and it’s still a mystery today.

Sally Ride (born 1951), the United States
It was no surprise that Sally Ride chose a career in space travel. When she was young, she was always interested in science and went on to study physics at Stanford University. Not long after graduating, she spotted an advertisement in a newspaper. The space agency NASA was looking for people to work in the American space programme. More than 5,000 people applied, and Sally was one of the successful candidates. She joined NASA in 1978. On June 18, 1983, she became the first American woman in space as a crew member on the space shuttle Challenger 7.

Richard Branson (born 1950), the United Kingdom
Sir Richard Branson, who owns a large media and travel company, has always enjoyed challenges. As well as setting up successful companies, he is well known for trying to break world records in travel. In 1987, Branson and his friend Per Lindstrand were the first people to cross the Atlantic Ocean in a hot-air balloon. The balloon, which Per had designed, took off from the US on July 2 and landed in Ireland on July 3, 31 hours later. They broke all the records for long-distance ballooning and changed the sport forever.