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Remembering great lady Kalpana Chawla on her birth anniversary.

1.Kalpana Chawla, the National Hero of India. Kalpana Chawla was an Indian-American astronaut and the first woman of Indian origin in space. She was born on March 17, 1962, in Karnal, Haryana, India. Chawla’s interest in flying began at a young age, and she earned a Bachelor of Engineering degree in Aeronautical Engineering from Punjab Engineering College in India.

Later, she moved to the United States to pursue her passion for aerospace engineering, earning a Master of Science degree in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Texas at Arlington and a Doctorate in AerospaceEngineering from the University of Colorado.

2.Kalpana Chawla has been looked up to as an inspirational woman and is a role model for many. The first Indian woman in space. Kalpana Chawla lived life to the fullest and made some head-turning achievements in her short life. Kalpana Chawla has inspired many Indian women to turn towards the field of science and technology and was a key member of various space missions. Kalpana Chawla died in the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster which occurred on February 1, 2003. The Space Shuttle Columbia disaster was when the space shuttle, Columbia, disintegrated over Texas during re-entry into the Earth’s atmosphere, sixteen minutes before its landing. As we remember the great astronaut on her 62nd birth anniversary, here are few things you need to know about Kalpana Chawla.

The Birth Date confusion

Although Kalpana Chawla was born on March 17, 1962, he birthday as per her schooling documents is July 1, 1961. This alteration to her official birth date was made so that Kalpana Chawla can join school early. As a child, Kalpana enjoyed drawing pictures of aeroplanes over playing with the dolls.

Columbia Tragedy

On STS-87, Kalpana Chawla was assigned as the mission specialist and primary robotic arm operator in November 1996. She began serving as the lead for the Astronaut Office’s Crew Systems and Habitability section after being appointed as a crew representative for shuttle and station flight crew equipment in January 1998. Her time in space totaled 30 days, 14 hours, and 54 minutes while she was a pilot on STS-87 (1997) and STS-107 (2003).

The final flight

In 2000, NASA astronaut Chawla was chosen as a mission specialist for a flight on Space Shuttle Columbia. This wouldn’t be her first adventure on it—she had soared into space aboard it in 1997, becoming the first Indian woman to conquer the final frontier.While that ride had been relatively smooth, her second Columbia flight, STS-107, encountered numerous delays and technical issues before finally lifting off on 16 January 2003.

What Happened to Kalpana Chawla

After the initiation of the reentry procedure of Columbia, telemetry indicated that the hydraulic fluid temperatures went off-scale low, and nothing could point out or explain the fault. In contrast, all the other hydraulic system indications were good. This off-scale low fluid temperature caused a sudden loss in tire pressure on the left side, which made the shuttle almost impossible to land due to not having proper tire pressure.

As per the reports by Space Safety Magazine, with each passing second, more and more sensors in Columbia started to malfunction, leading to the loss of all kinds of communication. Efforts of reestablishing contact with the radar and relocating the spacecraft by Houston failed.

The disaster was struck by then, and the reports of people spotting fireballs in the sky hit the headlines making the biggest nightmare of the team come to life.Commander Michael P. Anderson, Mission Specialists David M. Brown, Kalpana Chawla, and Laurel B. Clark, and Payload Specialist Ilan Ramon of the Israeli Space Agency, adding Commander Rick D. Husband and Pilot William C. “Willie” McCool were among the 7 astronauts who died in this tragedy.

Some interesting facts about Kalpana

• She logged 30 days, 14 hours, and 54 minutes in space over the course of her two missions.
• Before joining NASA, she obtained a Master of Science degree in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Texas at Arlington and a Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Colorado Boulder.
• Kalpana Chawla was posthumously awarded the Congressional Space Medal of Honor, the NASA Space Flight Medal, and the NASA Distinguished Service Medal.
• Chawla’s passion for flying started at an early age, and she earned her pilot’s license before pursuing her career in aerospace engineering.
• The Kalpana Chawla Award is given annually by the Government of Haryana to honor young women who have excelled in the field of science and technology.
• Several institutions and landmarks, including schools, scholarships, and roads, have been named in her honor.

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