In the history of space exploration, Latin astronauts have managed to position themselves and leave their own mark on history. For example Franklin Chang-Diazan astronaut of Costa Rican origin who made seven space flights and was the protagonist of the development of VASIMR, a plasma thruster for future missions to Mars. Or we can also highlight Jose Hernandezwho grew up in a family of migrant farmers and did not learn English until he was 12, but who ended up becoming a NASA astronaut, flying in the STS-128 mission of the space shuttle Discovery in 2009.
The pioneer? Ellen Ochoawho became the first woman of Latin descent to travel to spacemanaging to complete four space missions and more than 950 hours in space.
The Latina who musicalized her mission to space
The career of women in space began in the 60's with the help of Valentina Tereshkova and to this day he continues to add names to this extensive list of professionals. Regarding Latin ancestry, the first was Ellen Ochoa, who embarked on her first space flight in April 1993 aboard the shuttle Discovery.
But let's go back a couple of years. Before reaching for the stars, Ochoa graduated in physics and then earned a PhD in electrical engineering from Stanford University. As can be read in his biography, he could have dedicated himself to music professionallyspecifically the flute, and that it was even “better seen” than being an engineer. But he chose the sciences.
So, During her career at NASA she began as a researcher, times in which he even patented innovations in optical systems. Then, during his first mission, Ochoa carried out important solar and atmospheric studies, and also He integrated his passion for music by choosing to bring his flute to perform music in microgravity. That was an iconic fusion between art and science, and it was carried out with the aim of transmitting a powerful message to the youth of that time, teaching them what life in space is like.
In total Ellen Ochoa completed four space missions during her entire career at NASA. Those were the missions STS-56 in 1993, STS-66 in 1994, STS-96 in 1999 and STS-110 in 2002accumulating exactly 978 hours in space.
Subsequently, Ochoa continued to work with NASA overseeing the development of advanced technologies and encouraging the inclusion of more women in aerospace science.. Today her legacy extends beyond technical achievements, as at 66 she continues to be a tireless promoter of STEM education between minorities and women, using their own history to drive change in society.