Latino+Essay+CJ

One of the most important Spanish scientists is Franklin Chang-Diaz. He was an astronaut in the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). After his career in space, he still continued to contribute to science. He made a huge technological advancement that is now used in space. Being an astronaut, he has received many awards. He had a normal childhood, just like us, and achieved his goals, he went into space many times during his NASA career, and lastly, he helped develop technology to be used in space.

Born April 5, 1950, in Costa Rica, Chang is from Chinese decent. His father's side of the family is Chinese and his mother is Costa Rican ("Franklin Chang Diaz"). He was one of five other siblings was the only one to become an American Citizen, which happened in 1977 ("Franklin Chang Diaz"). But before he moved, he graduated elementary school in November 1967. Once in the US, he finished high school in Connecticut, 1969 ( "Astronaut Bio"). After high school, he attended the University of Connecticut. There, he earned a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering ("Astronaut Bio"). He continued to learn more, and more when he went to Massachusetts's Institute of Technology to earn a Doctor in Plasma Physics in 1977. With this, he worked in the field of fusion technology and plasma-based rocket propulsion ("Astronaut Bio").

In 1980 NASA selected him as an astronaut candidate. His first mission in space was in 1986 in the space shuttle //Columbia// ("Astronaut Bio") //. // He launched from the Kennedy Space Center here in Florida and went on a six-day flight. After orbiting Earth 96 times, he safely landed at an Air Force base in California ("Astronaut Bio"). He did six more missions in 1989, 1992, 1994, 1996, 1998, and 2002 ("Franklin Chang Diaz"). Three out of those seven were spacewalks with Philippe Perrin as part of the construction of the International Space Station ("Franklin Chang Diaz"). All the way up to 2004, he had been the only astronaut to go on seven space missions. Since 1993 to 2005, he was the Director of Advanced Space Propulsion Laboratory at the Johnson Space Center in Houston. In 2005, Franklin Chang-Diaz retired from NASA ("Astronaut Bio").

After NASA, he didn't stop working though. He set up Ad Astra Rocket Company ("Franklin Chang Diaz"). This company was dedicated to development of advancement of plasma rocket propulsion technology. After years of hard work, he and his company made the VASIMR, or the Variable Specific Impulse Magnetoplasma Rocket. This is an electrical device for use in space. It uses gases such as argon, xenon, or hydrogen (Mendez, Diego). To make things simple, it turns the cold gas into a superheated plasma, which is then directed out of a jet ( Mendez, Diego). He was inducted into the NASA Astronaut Hall of Fame on May 5, 2012, which also took place here in Florida at the Kennedy Space Center ("Franklin Chang Diaz"). From his home country, Costa Rica, he was awarded many times and named the Honor Citizen by the national legislature ("Franklin Chang Diaz"). In 2014, Chang was awarded the Buzz Aldrin Quadrennial Space Award for the VASIMR. One of the honors of receiving the award, is that Buzz Aldrin gave Chang the award himself.

In addition to his awards I mentioned before, Franklin Chang-Diaz earned 18 more. The first one he got was the University of Connecticut's Outstanding Alumni award in 1980. His collection continued to grow when he received seven NASA Space Flight medals in 1986, 1989, 1992, 1994, 1996, 1998, and 2002. He also received the Liberty Medal from President Ronald Reagan at the Statue of Liberty Centennial Celebration in New York City in 1986. One of his medals was the Medal of Excellence from the Congressional Hispanic Caucus in 1987. Another award he got from outside the country was the Cross of the Venezuelan Air Force from President Jaime Lusinchi during the 68th Anniversary of the Venezuelan Air Force in Caracas, Venezuela in 1988. He then went on to receive three NASA Exceptional Service Medals in 1988, 1990, 1993. In 1989, he received the Flight Achievement Award from the American Astronautical Society. He was awarded the NASA Distinguished Service Medal twice, once in 1995 and again in 1997. Because he put so much effort, research, and hard work into the VASIMR-totaling to 21 years-he was given the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics 2001 Wyld Propulsion Award (all from "Astronaut Bio").

As you can tell from his amazing variety of awards and medals, Franklin Chang-Diaz was a great scientist, astronaut, and contributor to our modern world. He is still living and will be remembered most for his VASIMR system. Now you know how qualified he was before joining NASA, what he did while part of the NASA program, about his company, Ad Astra rocket Company, and what they did, and his large collection of awards. It is people like him that make the world more knowledgeable and curious.


 * Bibliography**-


 * <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #333333; font-family: 'Open Sans',sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Mendez, Diego. "VASIMR." . Ad Astra Rocket Company, n.d. Web. 1 May 2014. <@http://www.adastrarocket.com/aarc/VASIMR>.


 * <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #333333; font-family: 'Open Sans',sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">"Franklin Chang Diaz." //<span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #333333; font-family: 'Open Sans',sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Wikipedia //<span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #333333; font-family: 'Open Sans',sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">. Wikimedia Foundation, 25 Apr. 2014. Web. 1 May 2014. < @https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franklin_Chang_Diaz<span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #333333; font-family: 'Open Sans',sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">>.

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 * <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #333333; font-family: 'Open Sans',sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">"Astronaut Bio: Franklin Chang-Díaz (9/2012)." //<span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #333333; font-family: 'Open Sans',sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Astronaut Bio: Franklin Chang-Díaz (9/2012) //<span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #333333; font-family: 'Open Sans',sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 May 2014. <@http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/chang.html>.