For way too long now, we’ve been living in a world that is hell-bent on clipping women’s wings, with a passion. Only if more people applied their energy resources to bring about an equilibrium in our society, the world would have already eradicated gender bias and patriarchy. As uncomfortable as it makes some people feel, thankfully, there are so many women and men who are equally hell-bent on bringing a change we all deserve.
Women are shattering the glass ceiling in every field, emerging as strong players and exhibiting immense calibre. While there are people who still claim that women are the weaker sex, there are women out there reaching the moon and the stars! Women have reached the space and their work deeply inspires us all to do our best in our own individual lives.
Here are three Indian-origin women who went to space and made us very proud.
Kalpana Chawla
The first Indian-American astronaut, Kalpana Chawla, made history with her work in space. She was born in Karnal, India. She grew up being fascinated with flying and later moved to the US to study further. She pursued PhD in aeronautical engineering after receiving two master’s degrees.
In December 1994, she was chosen by NASA as an astronaut candidate and spent years progressing her career with them. Chawla bravely went to space and spent 30 days, 14 hours, and 54 minutes in space on STS-87 (1997) and STS-107 (2003) missions. In 2003, unfortunately, in the Columbia space shuttle tragedy, Kalpana Chawla passed away as the shuttle exploded. The tragedy occurred merely 16 minutes before the intended touchdown over Texas.
Even though she couldn’t make it back, Chawla’s face and her name remain unforgettable.
Sunita Williams
Another woman who made it to the select list of people who get a chance to go on a space mission is Sunita Williams, who became the second woman of Indian origin to do so. Williams didn’t let Chawla’s demise scare her into not reaching for the sky—and as everyone waited with bated breath for her to return, she did.
Williams was born in Ohio in 1965. In July 1989, she became a Naval Aviator in the US. She was selected by NASA as an astronaut in June 1998 and started her training in August of the same year. It was in 2006 that she flew as an astronaut for the first time and spend 195 days on the International Space Station (ISS).
She has spent 322 days in space across two missions, making us incredibly proud of her achievements.
Sirisha Bandla
Bandla is an Indian-origin American who boarded Virgin Galactic’s Richard Branson’s VSS Unity, which launched into space for the 1.5-hour mission above New Mexico from the Spaceport America launch facility on July 11, 2021.
Bandla was born in Andhra Pradesh and was raised in Texas. She began her career at Virgin Galactic in 2015 as a government affairs manager. Shattering all glass ceilings, she climbed up the ladder so high, that today, she has become the third Indian-origin woman to go into space.
Also Read: 5 Careers That help You Save Our Planet
*Image for representational purpose only.