The Rebels of The World

Kalpana Chawla { Astronaut }

Kalpana Chawla (March 17, 1962 – February 1, 2003) was an American astronaut and engineer who was the first woman of Indian origin to go to space. She first flew on Space Shuttle Columbia in 1997 as a mission specialist and primary robotic arm operator. ... She is regarded as a national hero in India.

She flew on STS-87 (1997) and STS-107 (2003) and has logged 30 days, 14 hours and 54 minutes in space. SPACE FLIGHT EXPERIENCE: STS-87 Columbia (November 19 to December 5, 1997)

This day 18 years ago, NASA's Space shuttle Columbia exploded while reentering Earth's atmosphere, killing all its seven crew members including Kalpana Chawla, the first Indian-origin woman to go to space. ... When the shuttle re-entered the atmosphere, the damage enabled hot atmospheric gases to penetrate the heat shield.

40 years (1962–2003)Kalpana Chawla/Age at deathFebruary 1 marks the death anniversary of Indian origin astronaut Kalpana Chawla. The astronaut who passed away at the age of 40 became the first woman of Indian origin who went to space. Kalpana along with six other crew members died when their spacecraft Columbia was entering the Earth's atmosphere.

Kalpana Chawla's father, Banarasi Lal Chawla, says that his daughter had one dream only - that no child, especially girls, should ever be deprived of education.

In fact, her last wish was to live in the mountains. Chawla recalled: "We read the letter in which she mentioned that if she didn''t come back, her ashes should be scattered on either the Himalayas or a mountain at the Zion National Park.

After becoming a naturalised US citizen in April 1991, Chawla applied for the NASA astronauts corps. She was selected in December 1994 and reported to the Johnson Space Center in Houston in 1995 as an astronaut candidate in Group 15.

Kalpana always had a dream of landing on the moon. And as a result of her hard work and dedication, she reached such heights. Kalpana's first space mission was on November 19, 1994. She was a part of 6 member crew on space shuttle Columbia Flight STS-87.

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