But there's one thing you won't find in the history books about the first American woman in space.
That part of her legacy is now being told by her longtime partner of 27 years.
In the brand new National Geographic documentary "Sally," Tam O'Shaughnessy reveals the emotional and powerful truth about their love.
"Sally was one of the most relaxed people I've ever met, comfortable in her own skin," O'Shaughnessy says.
But Ride was not as comfortable sharing her personal life.
Space was one of Sally Ride's greatest loves.
O'Shaughnessy was the other.
"Sally risked everything to make history, but telling the world about us was a risk she just couldn't take," O'Shaughnessy says.
In "Sally," National Geographic reveals the private side of the public pioneer.
"There was a discrepancy between the Sally that we celebrated in the history books and the Sally she actually was," says Director Cristina Costantini.
"There's this amazing, beautiful romance that was happening during the years that she was this national icon. It's a great love story."
In 2012, Sally lost her battle with pancreatic cancer.
"It was about a week before Sally died," O'Shaughnessy says.
"I started wondering: Who the heck am I going to be to the people that don't know we were a couple? Who am I going to be in the world when you're gone?
She said to me: 'You decide, whatever you decide will be the right thing to do.'"
Tam decided to add their story to Sally's legacy.
"It felt great to just be open and honest for the very first time," O'Shaughnessy says. "It was amazing."
Sally spent three semesters studying physics at Swarthmore College before transferring to Stanford University.
On her historic space mission, she flew a Swarthmore pennant aboard the shuttle.
It's now displayed at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum.
In 2013, O'Shaughnessy accepted the Presidential Medal of Freedom on Sally's behalf.
"Coming out in a big, big time way," she says, "I felt so loved and supported by my country. They valued me as a queer woman. They valued my relationship with Sally. They valued the real Sally. It was remarkable."
"Sally" is streaming now on Hulu and Hulu on Disney+.