[ Astronauts & Cosmonauts ]

Kalpana Chawla
(KC)

Born: 1 July 1961, Karnal, India

Nationality: American

Died: 1 February 2003 (Breakup of Columbia on STS-107)

Flights:
1 STS-87 19 November 1997 15 days, 16 hours, 34 minutes
2 STS-107 16 January 2003 15 days, 22 hours, 20 minutes

Chawla was a mission specialist on STS-107. She was the first woman from India to fly in space. She had degrees in aeronautical engineering from Punjab Engineering College (undergraduate), University of Texas (master's), and the University of Colorado (doctorate).