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1. Why was a celebration held at Tagore high school in December 1997?, Ans: A celebration was being held at Tagore High School in December1997 in honour of Kalpana Chawla, who had become the first Indian born woman to go into space as part of the crew of the space shuttle ‘Columbia’., 2. Name some of Kalpana’s other interests as a school girl., Ans: Kalpana Chawla also took part in athletics, dance and karate. As a young girl she used to spend her time drawing airplanes and making colourful charts and models of the sky and the stars., 3. Why did Kalpana go to study in the US, and what did she study there?, Ans: Kalpana went to the US because Indian universities didn’t have specialized courses for aerospace studies. She studied Mtech in aerospace engineering at the University of Texas and Phd at the University of Colarado., 4. How was Kalpana inspired by JRD Tata? What did she have to say about him?, Ans: JRD Tata’s first flight was one of the major inspirations in her love for the stars and sky. She said that what Tata had done during those years was very intriguing and it definitely captured her imagination., 5. Why was Chawla selected by NASA over so many other applicants?, Ans: She was selected due to her academic record, physical fitness and experience as a pilot., 6. List the souvenirs that Kalpana took along with her on her second and final mission., Ans: Kalpana carried a photograph of herself with her husband, few trinkets for her family. She also took a T-shirt with her school logo and banner with the logo of Punjab Engineering College from where she graduated., 7. Describe the tragedy of Kalpanas second space mission., Ans: The tragic event took place on February 1, 2003as the shuttle was re-entering the earth’s atmosphere it broke apart into pieces sixty three kilometers above Central Texas, USA., 8. Why is Kalpana Chawla a role model?, Ans: Kalpana Chawla is a role model because through sheer determination and hard work she went on to become the first Indian woman astronaut, coming from a small town in India through great resolution and passion she went on to become one of the famous astronauts in the world.