William McCool, born September 23, 1961 in San Diego, California, was the pilot of Space Shuttle Columbia (STS-107) in January-February 2003. It was his first mission, but Columbia disintegrated upon re-entry February 1, 2003, killing everyone on board.
Florida Institute of Technology has named an apartment complex after him. The Navy Bachelors Enlisted Quarters at Tinker AFB in Oklahoma City is named after him.
Kathryn "Kay" Hire, born August 29, 1959 in Mobile, Alabama, has been in space twice. After getting her Bachelor of Science at the US Naval Academy, she got her Master of Science degree in Space Technology just up the road here at the Florida Institute of Technology in Melbourne, Florida! She was the first employee of the Kennedy Space Center to be chosen as an astronaut candidate.
Her first mission was aboard Columbia (STS-90) as mission specialist in April-May 1998. It was the final flight of the European Space Agency's Spacelab module.
Her second and last flight was aboard Endeavour (STS-130) as mission specialist to the International Space Station in February 2010. The primary payloads were the Tranquility module and the Cupola, a robotic controls station with six windows, providing a 360° view around the ISS.
Kalpana Chawla, born March 19, 1962 in India, was the first female Indian astronaut. Her official birth date was changed to July 1, 1961 so she could become eligible for the "matriculation exam", which is why I have a blog post also celebrating her "new" birth date. After obtaining her Bachelor's, she moved to the US and completed her Master's Degree in Aerospace Engineering at the University of Texas at Arlington.
Her first trip into space was aboard Columbia (STS-87) as mission specialist in November-December 1997. The mission continued experiments with the Microgravity Laboratory program.
Her second trip into space was aboard Columbia (STS-107) as mission specialist in January-February 2003. Unfortunately, the shuttle disintegrated upon re-entry and broke up over north Texas, killing all crew members.
Chawla is remembered in a number of ways. An asteroid has been named after her, as one of seven named after the Columbia's crew. A studen apartment complex at Florida Institute of Technology here in Melbourne is named for her. UTA opened a dorm named in her honor in 2004.
