Hilal Nakiboglu: Tragedy strikes an inspiration

I awoke Saturday morning to news of the Columbia space shuttle explosion. Disbelieving, I made my way through a dozen television channels in search of sense and explanation. I watched repeatedly as that long white streak sliced cloudless western skies in half. I listened to the hushed murmur of newscasters in the background, interrupted only by footage of the president's sobering statement that "the Columbia is lost," and his subsequent emotional salute to the seven who perished on board. Like many, I wasn't aware of the mission until its tragic end. Increasingly, space travel has come to be seen as a comfortably predictable, almost ordinary occurrence. Unless involving a zany millionaire, a boy band wonder or a chimpanzee, traveling beyond the skies today is barely newsworthy. Columbia's flight, NASA's 113th shuttle mission, has changed this. It has reminded us of the dangers inherent in space exploration and travel. It has told us again how vulnerable we are and how uncertain our science can be. Importantly, though, it has also given us a chance to marvel at the courage and grit of the astronaut. Learning of the seven lives extinguished above Texas last weekend, one astronaut's story touched me deeply. It is a story of extraordinary inspiration, pioneering spirit and the power of hope. Kalpana Chawla, one of two women on the mission, was a dreamer. As a girl, she was known to race old military planes on her bicycle while they took off near her home. Growing up, she'd climb onto the roof of her modest house in a conservative north Indian farming state to sleep under the stars. She dreamed of flying. Chawla was the youngest of four children. Nurturing a fascination and love for space, she decided early on to pursue a career in aerospace. Yet when she announced that she wanted to study engineering at a nearby college, she was met with deep resistance. In a nation where today, sadly, 60 percent of women are illiterate, Chawla's capabilities were undermined and somewhat dismissed. Her own family was initially reluctant to indulge the bright-eyed Chawla, and the teen subsequently struggled in earning their consent to study in a nearby city. "In our families, in Indian families, it is not normal to give freedom to a girl like this," explained Setia, her cousin. Chawla's uncles tried to keep her in their sleepy hometown of Karnal. Relentless, she eventually won her mother's support and was permitted to go. Yet the struggle did not end there. In a 1998 interview with the News India-Times, Chawla explained, "Only because I was a girl, people gave a hard time to my mother because she sent me to school in another town. How would you feel if people don't approve of what you are doing or your mother is doing for you?" Once in college, even Chawla's professors repeatedly advised her against her chosen field, initially discouraging her admittance to the male-dominated major. Yet she persevered, graduating at the top of her class with her sights set on advanced study in the United States. After completing both an M.S. and a Ph.D., Chawla did the unprecedented. She applied to NASA -- and was accepted. She was to make her mark on the pages of history in 1997 as the first Indian-American woman in space. In an interview a few years ago, her mother Sanyogita explained that she was "probably expecting a boy as [her] last child. But out came Kalpana, who has achieved more than a boy could." Despite her modest background and limited levels of support, Chawla then managed to press against the boundaries of conformity and expectation. Through her short life, she has reminded us of how powerful conviction and hope can be. She has reminded us to dream big. Kalpana Chawla is a heroine in the truest sense, and in her hometown last Sunday, she was mourned as one. Shortly before what was to be her last flight, Chawla described her exhilaration: "Just looking at Earth, looking at the stars during the night part of Earth; just looking at our planet roll by and the speed at which it goes by and the awe that it inspires; just so many such good thoughts come to your mind when you see all that. Doing it again is like living a dream, a good dream once again." Like her six fellow crew members, Chawla's legacy will be one of selfless service to humanity. She will be remembered for her pioneering example and richness in courage. Let us hope that Chawla and her partners in fate will continue to live that dream, that "good dream" for all of eternity. Hilal Nakiboglu is a second-year doctoral student in Higher Education Management from Ankara, Turkey.

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