This Echo is READ ONLY !   NO Un-Authorized Messages Please!
 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~   ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Renee Juhans
Headquarters, Washington                June 26, 2003
(Phone: 202/358-1712)

RELEASE: 03-207

NASA'S FIRST FEMALE HISPANIC ASTRONAUT SHARES EXPERIENCES

     Astronaut Ellen Ochoa, the first Hispanic woman to fly 
in space, has traveled the United States sharing her 
groundbreaking experience with students and educators. But 
when they meet her, they don't even notice her gender or 
cultural heritage. 

All they see is an astronaut. 

"They're interested in hearing what an astronaut does and 
understanding what it's like to live and work in space," 
Ochoa said. "They don't act surprised to see me." This is 
encouraging to Ochoa, who remembers a time when there were 
no female or Hispanic astronauts. Today, 27 members of 
NASA's Astronaut Corps are female, and nine are Hispanic.

Ochoa has spent nearly 1,000 hours in space during her four 
missions that include two atmospheric research flights and 
two missions to the International Space Station. Her first 
venture was in April 1993 during a nine-day science mission 
aboard the Shuttle Discovery. While most of her time was 
occupied using a suite of complex instruments to better 
understand the impact of the sun's cycle on Earth, Ochoa 
found a few minutes to use another instrument, the flute she 
brought from home.

A classical flutist, Ochoa found playing a musical 
instrument in space is not much different than playing it on 
Earth. Because the Shuttle cabin is pressurized, the flute 
worked the same in space, with one exception: in the near-
weightless environment, the flute practically held itself 
aloft. And she had the rare experience of playing the 
instrument while gazing down at the entire planet 160 miles 
below.

Her other hobbies include aviation closer to Earth. She's 
also a pilot, an interest she picked up after applying for 
the Astronaut Corps. "I realized how important it was to 
know something about aviation, and it was something I was 
interested in, so I followed my brother's footsteps and 
obtained my pilot's license," she said.

Ocha and her husband are the parents of two young sons, and 
would encourage them to become astronauts, if they choose. 
"Being an astronaut is a wonderful career," Ochoa said. "I 
feel very privileged. But what I really hope for young 
people is that they find a career they're passionate about, 
something that's challenging and worthwhile." 

Before becoming an astronaut Ochoa, who holds a Ph.D. in 
electrical engineering from Stanford University, was a 
researcher at Sandia National Laboratories in Livermore, 
Calif., and a researcher and manager at NASA's Ames Research 
Center in California.

She is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Women 
in Aerospace Outstanding Achievement Award, The Hispanic 
Engineer Albert Baez Award for Outstanding Technical 
Contribution to Humanity, and the Hispanic Heritage 
Leadership Award. 

Media organizations interested in interviewing Ochoa should 
contact John Ira Petty at: 
281/ 483-5111.

A complete biography of Ochoa is available on the Internet 
at:

http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/ochoa.html 

To learn more about NASA education activities on the 
Internet, visit:

http://edspace.nasa.gov

For information about NASA, the International Space Station, 
and human space flight on the Internet, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov

-end-

                            * * *

 - END OF FILE -
==========

@Message posted automagically by IMTHINGS POST 1.30
---