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AmERIcANnewsline

20 OCTOBER 08, 2021

IndIan-amerIcans In space

raja Chari to fly on SpaceX Crew-3 mission as

Sirisha Bandla joins the kalpana Chawla project

Bandla announces the graduation of five top scholars from 2021 Space Studies

Program (SSP) at the ISU

our Bureau Operations for Virgin Galac-
New York tic, where she has worked since
2015.
he Indian-American com- Bandla also announced the
munity is taking a giant graduation of five top scholars
Tleap forward. An Indi- from 2021 Space Studies Pro-
an-American astronaut will be gram (SSP) at the ISU. They
part of NASA-SpaceX’s third are: Richal Abhang, who works
mission to the International as a mechanical engineering stu-
Space Station. “NASA’s SpaceX dent where her task is to design
Crew-3 mission will carry NASA and manufacture prototypes
astronauts Raja Chari, Tom including seismic vibration iso-
Marshburn, and Kayla Barron lation and dampening systems;
as well as ESA (European Space Sucheshna Patil, an Engineer
Agency) astronaut Matthias who has a Masters & Bachelor
Maurer aboard a Crew Dragon of Engineering in Biotechnol-
spacecraft on a Falcon 9 rock- ogy Degree with experience at
et to the space station,” the US journey aboard a SpaceX Crew leadership qualities with talent- reputed Research Institutes as
space agency said in a statement. Dragon spacecraft. With Crew- ed Indian women. “I am hon- MD Anderson Cancer Center;
The four astronauts will 3, “the four-crew going up are ored to join the Board of Advi- Dr. Saswati Das, who is an MD
lift off to space on October 30 going to be doing even more sors of the four-crew Kalpana Biochemist from India with re-
from Launch Complex 39A at science,” Space.com reported Chawla Project. Dr. Kalpana search interests in Cardiac Bio-
NASA’s Kennedy Space Cen- Kathy Leuders, associate ad- Chawla was not only a great chemistry, Prenatal Screening,
ter in Florida, the statement ministrator for the Space Op- inspiration for me, but also for Neonatal screening, Radiation
added. Crew-3 is the SpaceX’s erations Mission Directorate at millions of other young Indian Biochemistry, Space Medi-
fifth crewed flight to space and NASA as saying. women and girls,” stated Band- cine, Nutrition Biochemistry,
fourth to the International Meanwhile, as UN cel- la in an ISU press release. Multi-Omics, and Risk Man-
Space Station. ebrates “Women in Space” “This year’s UN World agement; Monica Ekal, who is a
Indian-American Chari will during World Space Week (Oct. Space Week is particularly rel- PhD student at Instituto Superi-
serve as the commander of the 4-10), another Indian Ameri- evant because it celebrates the or Técnico in Lisbon, Portugal,
Crew Dragon spacecraft and can astronaut Sirisha Bandla importance of women in space,” and her work has been tested on
the Crew-3 mission. He also will has joined board of advisers of added Bandla who flew on the NASA’s Astrobee robotic plat-
serve as an Expedition 66 flight the Kalpana Chawla Project for Virgin Galactic Unity 22 mis- form onboard the International
engineer aboard the station. Innovation, Entrepreneurism sion to become the second In- Space Station; and Dr. Garima
Born in Milwaukee, he became and Space Studies. The Kalpa- dia-born woman to go to space. Patel, who is a Senior Physio-
a NASA astronaut in 2017 and na Chawla project at the Inter- Born in Guntur, India, therapist with 8+ years of clin-
this will be his first spaceflight. national Space University has Bandla moved to the US, where ical experience in neurological
He is also a colonel in the US Air been established to honor the she eventually attended univer- rehabilitation and her research
Force and has extensive experi- Karnal, India, born Dr. Kalpana sity and graduated with a BS in interests also include effects of
ence as a test pilot with more Chawla, the first woman of In- Aeronautical/Astronautical En- altered gravity on the human
than 2,500 hours of flight time. dian descent to go to space, who gineering from Purdue Univer- body, exercise countermeasures
The Crew-3 mission fol- died in Space Shuttle Columbia sity, and an MBA from George and Women’s Health in space.
lows Inspiration4, an all-civilian disaster in 2003. Washington University. She’s She is an alumnus of AIIPMR
crewed mission that lifted off The project is focused on the Vice President of Govern- and SVNIRTAR (pioneer insti-
on September 15 for an orbital developing strong technical and ment Affairs and Research tutes of physiotherapy in India).

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