By: Claire Ouyang
One Barbie, typically associated with the Barbie world, has ventured to space and back and is now exhibited for the first time.
This doll is part of an upcoming exhibition at London’s Design Museum in celebration of the 65th anniversary of the iconic toy brand.
The Space Barbie doll is inspired by Samantha Cristoforetti, a European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut and the first female commander of the International Space Station (ISS) from Europe. In 2022, this Space Barbie doll accompanied Samantha Cristoforetti during her six-month mission orbiting the Earth.
In 2021, Mattel, the company behind Barbie, worked with the ESA to introduce the Samantha Cristoforetti Barbie doll during World Space Week. Their main goal was to inspire young girls to pursue careers in astronautics, engineering, and space science.
Samantha, an Italian astronaut and former Air Force fighter pilot, embarked on her second mission to the International Space Station in April 2022. During this expedition, she carried out her first spacewalk, marking a significant milestone as the first European woman to do so.
During her time in space, Samantha conversed with five young girls over video call, who asked questions, including why she wanted to be an astronaut. The video recordings of these interactions will be featured in Barbie: The Exhibition alongside the doll.
Samantha said that it was an “opportunity to reach out to girls and boys to share the experience of an astronaut as a potential path in life, as a potential future, as a potential career… or as an adventure that you can be part of.”
The Samantha Cristoforetti doll will showcase Space Barbie’s extensive history in space exploration. A silver “Miss Astronaut” outfit, borrowed from the Mattel archives in Los Angeles, is described as “Barbie’s first depiction as an astronaut” and was launched in 1965.
Space Barbie will be showcased wearing a metallic pink spacesuit from 1985, demonstrating her science skills. This release was followed by astronaut and physicist Sally Ride’s groundbreaking achievement in 1983 as the first American woman to venture into space.