Israelis rejoiced on Wednesday as Jessica Meir, a 42-year-old Swedish-American born to an Israeli father, made it to space on the Russian Soyuz spacecraft.
Meir may not be officially a citizen in Israel, but she is considered by many to be a representative of the Jewish state and the first Israeli woman to go beyond earth.
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In 2003, Israeli Air Force officer Ilan Ramon became the first Israeli to reach space when he joined the crew of the Columbia Space Shuttle. That mission ended with tragedy as the spacecraft disintegrated on its re-entry and all crewmembers perished.
Just before the launch, she asked to take with her a painting of a phoenix created by Ramon's late wife, Rona, who worked tirelessly to advance space education and keep the memory of her husband alive through a special foundation, until her passing several months ago.
"The painting I am taking with me represents the heritage Rona worked to promote and the inspiration she provided as an educator through The Ramon Foundation," Meir said on Tuesday.
Smoke blasted off from the rockets' exhaust as the spacecraft fired off into the atmosphere.
On a live stream, Meir appeared calm onboard the capsule. The first fourth stages of the launch were successful as the capsule detached from its rockets, which fell safely back to Earth.
The Soyuz craft then entered the Earth's orbit on its way to the International Space Station. Onboard with Meir, were two other male astronauts, Hazaa Al Mansoori from the United Arab Emirates and Oleg Skripochka from Russia.
