First black female astronaut

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FL - SEPTEMBER 12: Space Shuttle Endeavour crew members (L-R) Mamoru Mohri, Japan's first astronaut to fly on the space shuttle, Mae Jemison, the first African American woman in space and Jan Davis and Mark Lee, the first married couple to fly together, walk out of the Operations and Checkout Building at the Kennedy Space Center, FL, 12 September 1992. Endeavour is set to launch on a seven-day mission later in the day. (Photo credit should read BRUCE WEAVER/AFP/Getty Images)

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STS-47 Mission Specialists Mae Jemison, left, Jan Davis, center, and Payload Commander Mark Lee wave to photographers as they leave the operations and checkout building on the way to launch pad 39-B at Kennedy Space Center, Fla., Sept. 12, 1992. Jemison is the first black woman to ride on the shuttle and Davis and Lee are the first married couple to fly together. (AP Photo/Peter Cosgrove)

Science Mission Specialist Mae Jemison prepares to

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, UNITED STATES: Science Mission Specialist Mae Jemison prepares to climb out of her T-38 training jet 09 September, 1992 after arriving at the Kennedy Space Center. Jemison, the first African American woman to fly in space, is a crew member on board the space shuttle Endeavour slated for a 12 September launch. (Photo credit should read ROBERT SULLIVAN/AFP/Getty Images)

Space Shuttle Endeavour Commander Robert Gibson (L

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, UNITED STATES: Space Shuttle Endeavour Commander Robert Gibson (L) makes a brief statement 09 September 1992 after arriving with his fellow crew members in Kennedy Space Center, FL. The rest of the crew behind Gibson are (L-R) Mark Lee, Jan Davis, Pilot Curtis Brown, Jay Apt, Mae Jemison and Mamoru Mohri. (Photo credit should read ROBERT SULLIVAN/AFP/Getty Images)

UNITED STATES : Dr Mae C Jemison was born in 1956 in Decatur, Alabama. She received a Bachelor in Chemical Engineering (and completed the requirements for a Bachelor in African and Afro-American studies) at Stanford University in 1977, and also received a Doctorate degree in medicine from Cornell University. After medical school she did post-graduate medical training and worked as an area Peace Corps medical officer for Sierra Leone and Liberia, managing the health care delivery system for US Peace Corps and US Embassy personnel. Jemison's background includes work in the areas of nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, and reproductive biology. She also developed and participated in research projects on the Hepatitis B vaccine and rabies. (Photo by SSPL/Getty Images)

Crewmembers of future Endeavour II space shuttle mission standing in astronaut gear. Johnson Space Center (Photo by Time Life Pictures/NASA/Time Life Pictures/Getty Images)

(L-R): Mae C. Jemison (to become 1st Afro-American woman in space), Dr. Mamoru Mohri, & 1st husband & wife astronauts N. Jan Davis & Mark C. Lee; members of future Endeavour II space shuttle flight; at Johnson Space Ctr. (Photo by Time Life Pictures/NASA/Time Life Pictures/Getty Images)

Payload specialist Mamoru Mohri, left, of Hokkaido, Japan, and Mission Specialist Mae Jemison of Chicago, walk together after arriving with the rest of the STS-47 crew, Sept. 9, 1992 at Kennedy Space Center, Fla. Mohri is scheduled to be the first Japanese astronaut on a shuttle mission while Jemison will be the first black woman aboard a shuttle when Endeavour lifts off on Saturday. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)