American Cargo Spacecraft “S.S. Kalpana Chawla” Is Set To Take Off For NASA’s International Space Station

“Sixteen minutes from home,” headlines read as the world witnessed Kalpana Chawla and her team of six other crew members pass away as their shuttle broke apart. On February 1st, 2003, the crew aboard the Space Shuttle Columbia perished on live television, due to a malfunction of structural damage during the launch itself. The event was drilled into the minds of many young children who grew up during that time. NASA suspended all space flight operations for around two years after the incident. Now, seventeen years after we lost Kalpana Chawla, an aerospace company has decided to honor her memory by naming their next Cygnus capsule after the inspiring astronaut. The cargo ship is set to begin its journey to NASA’s International Space Station on September 29th:

Honoring A Hero

The decision to name the spacecraft after Kalpana was taken by Northrop Grumman, which is a global aerospace company based in the US. NASA too, shared the news on their official Twitter account and stated the lift-off date. The company tweeted out, “Today we honor Kalpana Chawla, who made history at NASA as the first female astronaut of Indian descent. Her contributions to human spaceflight have had a lasting impact. Meet our next Cygnus vehicle, the S.S. Kalpana Chawla.”

In 1997, Kalpana Chawla made history by becoming the first Indian woman to enter space. On her first mission, she remained in space for around 15 days before the crew made their way back to Earth. While experiencing weightlessness in space for the first time, Kalpana was quoted as saying, “You are just your intelligence.”

Early Life

For many young Indian women, Kalpana Chawla was an icon. Her story inspired many other young girls to take an active interest in STEM. Kalpana was born in Karnal, Haryana, in the year 1962. She had an active interest in airplanes and flying at a very young age, and accompanied her father to a flying range where they got to ride in a two-seat cabin monoplane. Kalpana was an ace student and the apple of her parents’ eye. She graduated from Tagore School with high grades and enrolled in Punjab Engineering College.

After graduating from Punjab Engineering College with a degree in aeronautical engineering, Kalpana went on to study in the USA. It was at the University of Texas at Arlington that Kalpana acquired her master’s degree in Aerospace Engineering in the year 1984. Her efforts didn’t just stop there. She went on to earn a second master’s degree as well as a Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering. After graduating from the University of Colorado Boulder in 1988, she acquired a job at the renowned space agency, NASA.

The Ill-Fated Mission

After her first space mission in 1997, Kalpana was set to embark on her second space expedition on January 16th, 2003. The mission had been repeatedly delayed due to certain technical errors before it finally launched. While the crew aboard the Space Shuttle Columbia were in space, they conducted over 80 scientific experiments to improve future astronaut health and safety, space science, and to advance technology development related to space. Unfortunately, during the spacecraft launch, which was on its 28th flight to outer space, a piece of foam had broken off internally and struck the left-wing of the space shuttle orbiter.

Coincidentally, higher-ups at NASA had been made aware of this issue but believed that the damage was far too severe for the crew to fix it themselves. Thus, they limited the investigation on the matter. Once the space shuttle made a re-entry into the earth’s atmosphere, the heat from the atmospheric gasses destroyed the internal wing structure and caused the spacecraft to break apart. Due to the aftermath and backlash received from the general public after this incident, NASA put construction of the International Space Station on hold.

An Inspiration For Millions Worldwide

Kalpana Chawla was truly inspiring for millions of people across the world. She once said, “We seem to be living in these little whirlpools and forget that there is a whole river. The picture is much bigger. We should take the time to look at the picture. When you look at the stars and the galaxy, you feel that you are not just from any particular piece of land but also from the solar system.”

She truly was a woman who thought out of the box. No challenge was formidable for her to accomplish, and her legacy has lived on in Indian hearts and space history. As for India, ISRO had built a reputation for itself after launching the Mangalyaan or Mars Orbiter Mission. The mission made India the first Asian country to successfully reach the orbit of Mars on its maiden attempt. The news made headlines due to ISRO doing it on a tight budget of 450 Crore Rupees. This was the least expensive mission to Mars at the time.

Have you ever wanted to travel to space or another planet? Do you think commercial interplanetary travel will be a reality in our lifetime? Let us know all your thoughts in the comment section below.

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Niharika NayakBA (Media & Communication)

 

Niharika has a passion for all things art, music, and travel and has over 4 years of experience in writing for social media. During her spare time, she likes experimenting in the kitchen, playing video games, and hanging out with stray animals.

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