First woman of Indian descent to go to space died in Space Shuttle Columbia disaster.
A US resupply spacecraft named in honor of Kalpana Chawla, who made history at NASA as the first female astronaut of Indian descent, is on its way to the International Space Station.
Chawla, who dedicated her life to understanding flight dynamics, lost her life during the STS-107 mission when the space shuttle Columbia disintegrated upon reentering Earth’s atmosphere on Feb. 1, 2003, 16 minutes prior to scheduled landing.
The Northrop Grumman Cygnus resupply spacecraft with nearly 8,000 pounds of scientific investigations, technology demonstrations, commercial products, and other cargo was launched at 9:16 p.m. EDT Friday from NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility on Wallops Island, Virginia.
Launched atop an Antares rocket from the Virginia Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport, ‘SS Kalpana Chawla’ is scheduled to arrive at the space station around 5:20 a.m. Monday, Oct. 5, a NASA release said.
Expedition 63 Commander Chris Cassidy of NASA will use the space station’s robotic arm to capture Cygnus, while Ivan Vagner of Roscosmos monitors telemetry during rendezvous, capture, and installation on the Unity module’s Earth-facing port.
Cygnus will remain at the space station until mid-December before it disposes of several thousand pounds of trash as it burns up during a safe re-entry into Earth’s atmosphere.
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Born in Karnal, Haryana, India on March 17, 1962, Chawla received a Bachelor of Science degree in aeronautical engineering from Punjab Engineering College in India in 1982.
She then moved to the US to pursue her graduate education; in 1984 she received a Master’s degree in aerospace engineering from the University of Texas, and a PhD in aerospace engineering from the University of Colorado in 1988.
Selected by NASA in December 1994, Kalpana Chawla reported to the Johnson Space Center in March 1995 as an astronaut candidate in the 15th Group of Astronauts.
In November, 1996, Kalpana Chawla was assigned as mission specialist and prime robotic arm operator on STS-87. She flew on STS-87 (1997) and STS-107 (2003), logging 30 days, 14 hours and 54 minutes in space.
STS-87 made 252 orbits of the Earth, traveling 6.5 million miles in in 376 hours and 34 minutes.
The 16-day STS-107 Columbia flight was a dedicated science and research mission. Working 24 hours a day, in two alternating shifts, the crew successfully conducted approximately 80 experiments.
Chawla was posthumously awarded the Congressional Space Medal of Honor, the NASA Space Flight Medal, and the NASA Distinguished Service Medal.
Northrop Grumman’s 14th contracted cargo flight to the space station and the third under its Commercial Resupply Services 2 contract with NASA – will support dozens of new and existing investigations.
Included aboard Cygnus for delivery to the space station is a new toilet system that would help NASA prepare for future missions, including those to the Moon and Mars.
An electrochemical ammonia removal system could serve as an innovative water recovery system on long-duration missions to the Moon and Mars and provide vital drinkable water in remote and arid areas on Earth.
A new crop of vegetables is also headed to the space station. Radishes have been added to different types of lettuces and greens to see how different light and soil conditions affect growth.
The International Space Station Experience (ISS Experience) is also creating an immersive virtual reality series documenting life and research aboard the space station.
In addition to science and research, this launch will also support NASA’s commercial space endeavors.
Estée Lauder’s New Advanced Night Repair serum will be photographed in the space station’s iconic cupola window as part of such efforts.