Kalpana Chawla

Hello! My name is Kalpana Chawla. I want to tell you my story, which started in a town called Karnal in India, where I was born on March 17th, 1962. Ever since I was a little girl, my head was in the clouds—literally. I loved watching airplanes soar across the sky. While other kids were playing with dolls, I was drawing pictures of planes and dreaming of flying one myself. My family gave me the nickname 'Montu.' I didn't just want to fly in planes; I wanted to know everything about how they worked. That curiosity was the beginning of my journey to the stars.

My dream of flying wasn't just a daydream; it was a goal. I knew I had to study hard to make it come true. In 1982, I earned a degree in aeronautical engineering from Punjab Engineering College in India. But I wanted to learn even more, so I moved all the way to the United States. It was a big adventure! I went to the University of Texas at Arlington and got my Master's degree in 1984. Still, I wasn't done learning. I moved to Colorado and, in 1988, I earned my PhD in aerospace engineering. I was now a doctor of flying machines.

After finishing my studies, I started working at NASA, the American space agency. It was incredible, but my biggest dream was still to travel into space. To become a NASA astronaut, I first needed to become a citizen of the United States, which I did in 1991. I applied to the astronaut program, knowing that thousands of other brilliant people were also applying. I waited and hoped, and then, in 1994, I got the most exciting news of my life: NASA had chosen me to become an astronaut! I was going to train to go to space.

After years of training, my dream finally came true. On November 19th, 1997, I flew into space for the first time aboard the Space Shuttle Columbia on a mission called STS-87. The feeling of launching into the sky was more amazing than I could have ever imagined! From my window, I could see our beautiful planet Earth, a swirling blue and white marble in the blackness of space. I was the first woman born in India to travel to space, and I felt so proud. For over two weeks, my crewmates and I orbited the Earth, doing important science experiments. It was a journey that changed my life forever.

I loved being in space so much that I couldn't wait to go back. A few years later, I was chosen for a second mission, STS-107, once again on the amazing Space Shuttle Columbia. We launched on January 16th, 2003. For 16 days, my crew and I worked around the clock on all sorts of scientific projects. We were a team from different parts of the world, working together to learn more about our universe. We were so focused on our work and so happy to be exploring space for the benefit of everyone back on Earth.

Our mission, STS-107, was a great success, but our journey home on February 1st, 2003, ended in tragedy when the Space Shuttle Columbia broke apart. My brave crewmates and I did not survive. I lived to be 40 years old, and I filled those years with learning, adventure, and the joy of following my dreams. I hope my story shows you that the path from dreams to success does exist. It doesn't matter where you come from; if you have a dream and are willing to work hard for it, you can reach for the stars, just like I did. Never stop looking up.