Kalpana Chawla was an Indian-American astronaut who made history as the first woman of Indian origin to go to space. She was born in Karnal, Haryana, India, on March 17, 1962, to parents who encouraged her to pursue her dreams and education.
Kalpana showed a keen interest in science and flying from a young age. She earned a degree in aeronautical engineering from Punjab Engineering College in India and went on to earn a Master's degree in aerospace engineering from the University of Texas at Arlington. She later obtained a Ph.D. in aerospace engineering from the University of Colorado Boulder.
Kalpana's talent and hard work led her to NASA, where she became a naturalized US citizen and went on to become an astronaut. She flew her first space mission in 1997 as a mission specialist on the space shuttle Columbia. She became the first woman of Indian origin to go to space and spent over 30 days orbiting the Earth.
Kalpana's passion for space exploration led her to embark on her second space mission in 2003, as a mission specialist on the STS-107 mission. Tragically, the mission ended in disaster when the space shuttle Columbia disintegrated during re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere, killing all seven crew members, including Kalpana.
Kalpana Chawla's legacy as an astronaut and a trailblazer for women and people of Indian origin in the field of space exploration lives on. She continues to inspire generations of young women and men to pursue their dreams and reach for the stars.
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