Kalpana Chawla's Biography

Kalpana Chawla Position: Flight engineer. Personal data: Born in Karnal, India. Interests: Flying aerobatics, hiking, backpacking, reading. Education: Bachelor's in aeronautical engineering from Punjab Engineering College, India. Master's in aerospace engineering from University of Texas. Doctorate in same from University of Colorado. Work experience: Licensed commercial pilot and flight instructor. Has done computational and aerodynamics research. Prime robotic arm operator on STS-87 in 1997. As a youngster in her native Karnal, India, Columbia flight engineer Kalpana Chawla, would join her brother for long bicycle rides that often took them close to a local flying club. She recalled a fascination with the light planes as they took off and landed and credited the experience with eventually leading her into the field of aerospace engineering, her stepping stone to the astronaut corps. Chawla, who earned a master's degree in aerospace engineering from the University of Texas, was making her second trip into space. "I'm looking forward to the flight, of course. After you go to space once, you sort of get addicted, you want to have the same experience," she explained to reporters at a Jan. 3 pre-flight news conference. "That's precisely what I feel, especially the part the part about looking at the Earth, looking at the stars. Doing it again is like having a good dream once again." Those bicycle rides with her brother eventually convinced Chawla's father to secure a ride in a plane and glider for his daughter. She combined the experience with an interest in a pioneering Indian aviator. By the time, she was in high school, Chawla was determined to become an aerospace engineer. After earning a bachelor's degree in the field at the Punjab Engineering College, Chawla pursued graduate work in aerospace first at the University of Texas then at the University of Colorado, where she earned a doctorate in 1988. Chawla began her professional career at NASA's Ames Research Center at Moffit Field, Calif., where she characterized the air flows around high performance aircraft. Trained as an aerobatic pilot, Chawla was selected by NASA for astronaut training in 1994. Three years later, Chawla participated in her first spaceflight, a lengthy shuttle research mission. Chawla was married to Jean-Pierre Harrison.