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Century has acquired Women in Space, a book by spaceflight expert Libby Jackson chronicling the lives of 50 inspirational women, including astronauts, scientists, engineers and other pioneers of human space exploration.
The guide, to be published on 16th November in hardback, audio and e-book, will highlight the achievements of women such as Valentina Tereshkova, Helen Sharman and Peggy Whitson, the latter who holds the record for the most days in space by any US astronaut. It will be illustrated throughout by student artists from the London College of Communication.
Jackson, who is the human spaceflight and microgravity programme manager for the UK Space Agency, began working in the space industry began when she applied for work experience at NASA aged 17 from her secondary school in Kent. A decade on, after completing a physics degree at Imperial College, she began working at Mission Control from the European Space Agency side in Munich. Since then she has worked as a Columbus flight director on missions to the International Space Station and between 2014 and 2016 managed the UK Space Agency education and outreach programmes that supported Tim Peake’s mission.
Ben Brusey, deputy publisher of Century, acquired world rights from Jackson directly, while the illustrations were organised by Matt Guy, partnerships manager at the London College of Communication.
Jackson said: "From the very beginning, women have played key roles in the space age and have been central to the story of space exploration. I’m so excited to be celebrating these remarkable individuals and their extraordinary work in this book. I hope that readers everywhere, particularly young people, will be inspired by these stories to follow their own dreams of space."
Brusey said: "Libby is a brilliant and passionate communicator, and the perfect guide to inspire readers to shoot for the stars. I’m convinced that this book will fire the imaginations of readers of all ages this Christmas."