1993

The space shuttle Discovery lifted off from the Kennedy Space Center with astronaut Ellen Ochoa on board, the first Hispanic woman in space. Ochoa started at NASA in 1988 after receiving a doctorate in electrical engineering from Stanford University. Two years later, she was selected as an astronaut. On her first mission, Ochoa served as a Mission Specialist on a 9-day space flight, the primary mission of which was to study Earth's ozone layer. She went on to fly three more space shuttle missions. She holds several patents for technologies related to automated space exploration and served as Director of the Johnson Space Center. Among numerous other awards, she has received NASA's highest honor, the Distinguished Service Medal.