Franklin Chang-Diaz
| Franklin Ramón Chang Díaz | |
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| NASA Astronaut | |
| Nationality | Costa Rican, American |
| Status | Retired |
| Born | April 5, 1950 San José, Costa Rica |
| Other occupation | Physicist |
| Alma mater | University of Connecticut (BS) Massachusetts Institute of Technology (PhD) |
| Time in space | 66d 18h 16m |
| Selection | 1980 NASA Group |
| Missions | STS-61-C, STS-34, STS-46, STS-60, STS-75, STS-91, STS-111 |
| Mission insignia |        |
| Franklin Chang-Diaz | |||||||||
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| Traditional Chinese | 張福林 | ||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 张福林 | ||||||||
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Franklin Ramón Chang Díaz (born April 5, 1950) is a Costa Rican-American engineer, physicist and former NASA astronaut. He is currently president and CEO of Ad Astra Rocket Company.[1] He is a veteran of seven Space Shuttle missions, making him the record holder as of 2008 for the most spaceflights (a record he shares with Jerry L. Ross). He was the third Latino American to go into space,[2] (first Latino American was Arnaldo Tamayo Méndez [3] from Cuba in 1980, and second was Rodolfo Neri Vela from Mexico in 1985) and is the first naturalized US citizen to become an astronaut.[4]
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[edit] Education
Chang-Diaz was born in San José, Costa Rica to a father of Chinese descent and a Costa Rican mother, both Costa Rican-born.[citation needed] He studied at La Salle School, then moved to the United States to finish his high school education. He went on to attend the University of Connecticut, where he earned a Bachelor of Science in mechanical engineering and joined the federal TRIO Student Support Services program in 1973.[5] He then attended the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he earned a Doctor of Philosophy in applied plasma physics in 1977.[5] For his graduate research at MIT, Chang-Diaz worked in the field of fusion technology and plasma-based rocket propulsion.[4]
[edit] NASA career
Chang-Diaz was selected as an astronaut candidate by NASA in 1980 and first flew aboard STS-61-C in 1986. Subsequent missions included STS-34 (1989), STS-46 (1992), STS-60 (1994), STS-75 (1996), STS-91 (1998), and STS-111 (2002). During STS-111, he performed three EVAs with Philippe Perrin as part of the construction of the International Space Station. He was also director of the Advanced Space Propulsion Laboratory at the Johnson Space Center from 1993 to 2005. Chang-Diaz retired from NASA in 2005.[4]
[edit] Post-NASA career
After leaving NASA, Chang-Diaz set up the Ad Astra Rocket Company, which became dedicated to the development of advanced plasma rocket propulsion technology. Years of research and development have produced the Variable Specific Impulse Magnetoplasma Rocket (VASIMR), an electrical propulsion device for use in space.[6] With a flexible mode of operation, the rocket can achieve very high exhaust speeds, and even has the theoretical capability to take a manned rocket to Mars in 39 days.[7]
Chang-Diaz also is active in environmental protection and raising awareness about climate change, notably in his role in Odyssey 2050 The Movie in which he encourages young people to get motivated about environmental issues.[8]
[edit] Awards and honors
Due to his career and scientific success, he has been decorated multiple times in Costa Rica and named Honor Citizen by the national legislature.[9][Full citation needed] The Costa Rican National High Technology Center (CeNAT), among other institutions, is named after him.[10][Full citation needed]
[edit] Personal
As of 2008[update], one of his daughters, Sonia Chang-Díaz, was a member of the Massachusetts Senate, representing the second Suffolk district seat.[11][12]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Ad Astra Rocket Company – About us, company website, accessed 2010-03-10
- ^ NOVA Science Now. "Profile: Franklin Chang-Diaz". PBS. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/space/profile-chang-diaz.html. Retrieved April 21, 2011.
- ^ EcuRed. "Profile: Franklin Chang-Diaz". EcuRed. http://www.ecured.cu/index.php/Arnaldo_Tamayo_M%C3%A9ndez. Retrieved May 24, 2011.
- ^ a b c Franklin Chang-Diaz: Astronaut and Rocket Scientist, WIRED Science, 2007-11-14, accessed 2010-03-10.
- ^ a b Spacefacts Biography of Franklin Chang-Diaz. Spacefacts. Retrieved July 18, 2011.
- ^ http://www.nasa.gov/vision/space/travelinginspace/future_propulsion.html
- ^ http://www.reddit.com/r/science/comments/9q3z5/former_astronaut_dr_franklin_changdiaz_explains/
- ^ Whelan, Ben. "Odyssey 2050". Odyssey 2050. British Embassy Costa Rica. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mjFG-v82Sew. Retrieved 28 February 2012.
- ^ http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/chang.html
- ^ http://www.cenat.ac.cr
- ^ "Sonia Chang-Diaz grabs Senate seat - BostonHerald.com". Boston Herald. 2008-11-05. http://news.bostonherald.com/news/politics/view.bg?articleid=1130129. Retrieved 2008-11-08.
- ^ Drake, John C. (2008-09-17). "A Senate fixture toppled: Chang-Díaz defeats embattled Wilkerson in primary". Boston Globe. http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2008/09/17/a_senate_fixture_toppled/. Retrieved 2008-11-08.
[edit] External links
- Ad Astra Rocket
- Advanced Space Propulsion Laboratory
- Centro Nacional de Alta Tecnología Dr. Franklin Chang Díaz (CeNAT)
- NASA Biography
- Spacefacts biography of Franklin Chang-Diaz
- Home page of Franklin Chang-Diaz
- NOVA scienceNOW profile
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