The Torche Bearer in The Dark

In later sixties while watching a little girl at the age of around 6-8 staring at the flying planes for hours and hours from the roof top in a small town of Hariyana in India perhaps nobody in the surroundings might have thought that one day this little girl would make them proud by creating a history in the world through her glorious contribution to space inventions. Obviously they were looking at the curiosity of the girl and not at the ideas and imagination passing through her mind. This little girl was none other than Kalpana Chawla. But the God was well aware of the adventurous and courageous nature and capacity to turn dreams in to reality of this distinguished personality and that’s why he has choosen the right home ground for this girl at Karnal, a small town having unique distinction of having a flying club at that time.

Unlike an average woman of India penury was not the problem for Kalpana when she born in a middle class business family of Karnal in 1961 and was the youngest child. Banarasidas Chawla owner of a brick kiln suddenly advanced as pioneer of rubber industry in Hariyana and became a leading manufacturer of tyres just after the birth of his daughter Kalpana. Due to this development Kalpana was considered as an auspicious child which created a favourable atmosphere for Kalpana in the conservative Chawla family. Hence this family never became a hurdle in Kalpna’s pursuit of space mission. Otherwise in India, a land where a woman is treated like a property and her life beyond marriage is highly objectionable in the conservative family Kalpana could not have even thought to do what she has done.

Dr. Kalpana Chawla, the India born NASA astronaut, a name that hardly requires any introduction not only in India or US but anywhere in the world, died at the age of 42 on First February, 03 when space shuttle Columbia caught fire and crushed just before its scheduled landing on earth. No doubt crash of Columbia has created hype in different media all over the world about the rationality of space mission. But contrary to that, Kalpana’s death has inspired so many youth especially in India to be more concentrated on their study or work with a strong determination and not to give up their dreams until they are fulfilled. Her death is widely considered as a sacrifice for betterment of the community and her on board message from Columbia, received just two days before her death, to the students of Punjab Engineering College, Chandigadh that, ‘‘The path from dreams to success does exist. May you have the vision to find it, the courage to get on to it and the perseverance to follow it. Wishing you a great journey.’’ is treated as a motto by the youth.

A shy but intelligent Kalpana enjoyed her childhood by playing cricket with boys, wearing trousers, taking part in dance competitions while maintaining sufficient focus on her studies. She loved to draw sketches of planes and other flying objects in her school days. According to the people who were fortunate to see the little Kalpana in her childhood, she was very much different one from other girls of her age. Her teachers still remember her talking and dreaming of going to moon and classify her as a perfectionist and all rounder. Kalpana’s performance is said to be excellent not only in studies but in classical dance also.

Attraction to fly pulled Kalpana towards the flying club of Karnal. She started visiting this club even before she completed her school education. After completing her school study in the Tagore Niketan School of Karnal, Kalpana took admission in to Punjab Engineering College, Chandigadh and preferred to aeronautics branch in 1978. A broken wing of an aeroplane kept outside the college could not change her mind or affect her determination. She was the only girl of her batch. But after all Kalpana was a trend setter girl and completed her study in the field selected.

When Kalpana was highly concentrating on the search of the right universities for advanced study, her family members were in search for a suitable match for Kalpana! For relatives other than family members of Kalpana it was more than enough that Kalpana had moved from backwaters of Karnal to Chandigadh for higher studies. Hearing the news that Kalpana opted for higher studies in USA scandalized them. Some of them even went to her family advising that who would marry this over qualified girl. In spite of this opposition Kalpana anyhow managed to fly to USA for further studies.

Now Kalpana was on right track moving fast but the road was very long. Obtaining master degree from Texas in 1984 she also got doctor ate of philosophy from Colorado in 1988 both in aerospace engineering. To put an end to dilemma of her family she married to a fellow US scientist Jean-Pierre Harrison. Then this ambitious lady began her career at NASA’s Ames Research Centre in 1988. Thereafter she joined Overset Methods Inc. in 1993 as Vice President. In December 1994 Kalpana’s dream came to the doorstep of reality when she was selected as a astronaut candidate by NASA. In March 1995 Kalpana reported at Johnson Space Centre for the necessary training and evaluation. Finally on November 19 1997 she left for the journey, which she was dreaming since her childhood. It was the flight no. ATS-87 of Columbia which took Kalpana to her kalpana (imagination). This space trip ended on 5th December 1997.

In her maiden trip to space Kalpana spent 376 hours took 252 orbit rounds around the earth measuring 6.5 million miles. During this period she made various experiments like effect of weightlessness in space and also enjoyed space walk. In her view sitting at the door of the shuttle and watching the very small earth was the most exiting and best moment of the entire mission. Kalpana is said to be second India born astronaut. But very few persons know that there is a big difference between Rakesh Sharma, the first Indian who travelled in to space and Kalpana who explored the space. Rakesh Sharma was just an international passenger without any responsibility on Soviet space flight. Whereas Kalpana was selected by NASA as an astronaut on the basis of her strong academic career and experience and she had to perform crucial duties on board. In her both visits to space she was roped in with the responsibilities of handling of the space shuttle and experimenting in space.

Kalpana’s performance was perfect and up to the mark. Hence she was again selected by NASA for second trip of the space. Flight no. STS-107 of Columbia, the oldest shuttle of NASA in service since 1981, departed with seven crewmembers including Kalpana on 16th of January 2003. But for the God nobody was knowing that they were going to space forever. The mission was exclusively dedicated to science and research. They conducted eighty experiments in the space on behalf of different space organizations of various countries like Japan, Germany, Canada and other European countries among which Kalpana single handedly carried out twelve experiments. The mission was completed successfully and they were on their way back to the earth after spending sixteen days in space, working 24 hours a day in two alternative shifts. But just 15 minutes prior to the scheduled landing of Columbia at a height of 63000 meters and speed over 20000 km per hour what happened is known to all of us. Perhaps the God may have feared of developing capacities of a human being and therefore took these seven people away from us.

Even though Kalpana has migrated to US in early eighties her heart ever remained attached to India. Therefore last year, when she heard she was selected out of 4000 engineers for the mission STS-107 she spontaneously wrote to Chandigadh administration and asked for college memorabilia. Earlier on her first ever mission to the space in 1997 she had taken with her memento like T-shirt with names and logos of her school and college-Tagore Niketan and PEC. She never forgot the moment that came at the seventh hour of her first trip to space when she looked at the Karnal and Chandigadh from the sky along with these mementos. News of Colunbia crash was shocking for the residents of Karnal but the only solace for the town is that she carried a bit of Karnal on her flight in form of memento specially designed for her. She had also sent back the memorabilia personally signed by entire NASA team with a message that “ reach for the stars”. She said it and she did it. However, for the second time people of Karnal and Chandigadh were not so fortunate to get back the memorabilia with a blessing of their beloved Kalpana.

Kalpana also made a programme to host two children from Tagore Niketan School at NASA every year since 1998. One of them who spent two weeks at her home as a part of this programme still remembers the book lined walls of her house at Houston, Texas. “ Follow your dreams, nothing is impossible. Even if your family does not support you, you have to believe in your dreams” is something Kalpana never tired of repeating recalls Neha Sharma who enjoyed the visit to NASA in 2000.

The spectacular loss of Columbia snatched away the golden girl of Punjab but she is still alive in the memory. People find it difficult to decide whether to mourn for Kalpana’s final departure or to celebrate her amazing journey from Karnal to the stars in the Galaxy. According to Narinder Singh the next door neighbour of Chawlas, Kalpana is one of the best examples of how you can live a life of your Kalpana (imagination). A teacher who taught Kalpana English and Hindi says,” She always said she wanted to reach the stars. She went there and beyond “. Headline of one of the leading dailies says altogether, “ Indian engineer who died at the moment she had lived for “. Nobody knows if it is a co-incidence that fire was the cause of the crash of Columbia and Kalpana’s last experiment in the space was also on the physics of fire.

Generally people die unsung and are forgotten even before their last rites are over. There are a few lucky ones like Kalpana Chawla who live in everyone’s heart forever. Well, to give tribute to the daughter of India various news stories are still flooding in media, awards and trophies in her name are being introduced at various level of education and space research activities, one satellite is being named after her. But the real tribute to Kalpana Chawla will be to provide more and more knowledge and information to ignite the hunger for the achievement, virtue and capabilities that she had and to struggle with the hardship as she faced, to the future generation. This will facilitate them their best role model and make them firm determined to turn up their dream in to reality. If this is done more Kalpanas will come forward and shine on the horizon of India.