Latino+esssay+cm2

= = http://scratch.mit.edu/projects/22603156/ = = = = = Resources =
 * Scholastic - Latinos in History
 * FactMonster.com - Search under People and Biographies
 * [|Wikipedia] - search for Latinos in science, Latinos in technology, Hispanics in science, Hispanics in technology

Find your own additional facts about the people who are in the [|"Latinos in History"] section. You can also choose other Hispanic Americans about whom you would like to learn more and research these individuals on the Web and in books. ||  ||  ||
 * **Latinos in History **
 * Biography Skill Sheet **
 * external image spacer.gif ||  || **Name of History Maker **

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 * Franklin Chang-Diaz ** ||


 * Franklin Chang-Diaz was born on April 5, 1950.(Nasa)
 * He was an astronaut. (Nasa)
 * He graduated from Hartford High School in Connecticut in 1969. (Nasa)
 * He also received the Liberty Medal from President Ronald Reagan in New York at the statue of Liberty. (Nasa)
 * For college he went University of Connecticut . (Nasa)
 * He also received the Cross of the Venezuelan Air Force from President Jaime. (Nasa)
 * Franklin Chang-Diaz intend to write about his life experiences and the achievement of a dream that he hope will help others achieve theirs. (Nasa)
 * He has been involved in many pursuits that might be of interest to him. (Nasa)
 * Franklin Chang-Diaz enjoys the opportunity to speak to interested audiences about his life and vision. (Nasa)
 * First and foremost is his participation as Chairman CEO of Ad Astra Rocket Company. (Nasa)
 * He has now published his first book. (Nasa)
 * He will find links to a number of other publications. (Nasa)
 * He believe a large measure of his good fortune was due to the help that he received from many others during these formative years. (Nasa)
 * In 1990, he led a group of space scientists of a plan for regional integ. (Nasa)
 * Franklin Chang-Diaz became a U.S. Citizen.(Nasa)
 * He also studied hard to become a scientist. (Nasa)
 * He was the first Hispanic person to enter the space program, and he became an astronaut in 1981. (Nasa)
 * Franklin Chang-Diaz was also a veteran of six space missions and has spent nearly 1,300 hours in space. (Nasa)
 * Franklin Chang-Diaz served as Director of the Advanced Space Propulsion Laboratory at the Johnson Space Center. (Nasa)
 * In 1973 Franklin Chang-Diaz entered graduate school at MIT. (Nasa)

This is about Franklin Chang-Diaz who became an astronaut. According to Encyclopedia Britannica, “Franklin Chang-Diaz was born on April 5, 1950 in San Jose, Costa Rica” **(Britannica**.**com).** His dad was Chinese and his mom was Costa Rican. Biographical Data states, “He was one of four children and enjoyed music, planes, playing soccer and hiking” **(jsc.nasa.gov).** When he was just six years old Franklin climbed up a tree and watched the sky for hours. He was in Russia and watched the first man made satellite orbit the Earth. This is when he first got interested in space. From that day on, he was always interested in space. He graduated from Hartford High School in Connecticut in 1969. After that, he went to college at the University of Connecticut, where he graduated in 1973. “He then attended the Massachusetts Institute of Technology where he earned a Doctor of Plasma Physics in applied plasma physics in 1977” (**Wikipedia.org).**

In 1980, he was selected by NASA to become an astronaut. While training to become an astronaut, he participated in the early space station design studies. Over the next few years he worked on the first spacelab mission and became a supervisor of an astronaut support team at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. In 1984 he was married to Peggy Doncaster. They have four daughters.

Franklin Chang-Diaz first flew in a spaceflight in January, 1986. From 1986 to June, 2002, Franklin flew five more spaceflights. He also performed three spacewalks with Philippe Perrin during the construction of the International Space Station. From 1993 to 2005 he was the director of thee Advanced Space Propulsion Laboratory at the Johnson Space Center. He retired from NASA in 2005. “Dr. Chang Diaz retired from NASA in July, 2005 **(jsc.nasa**.**gov**). After leaving NASA, he set up the Ad Astra Rocket Company, which developed advanced plasma rocket propulsion technology. This development enabled rockets to reach very high exhaust speeds, and has the theoretical capability to take a manned rocket to Mars in 39 days. He received the Liberty Medal from President Ronald Reagan in New York at the Statue of Liberty. He also received a cross of the Venezuelan Air Force from President Jaime.

Franklin Chang-Diaz was inducted into the NASA Astronaut Hall of Fame in May, 2012. The ceremony took place at Kennedy Space Center. He has also received awards in Costa Rica and was named an honor citizen by the national legislature there. In Costa Rica, the National High Technology Center has been named after him. Just this year, he has received the Buzz Aldrin Space Award by the Explorers Club for the VASMIR. Buzz Aldrin, whom was Franklin's childhood hero, presented the award to him. He is the only Latin American astronaut.

He intended to write about his life experiences and the achievement of his dream that he hopes will help others achieve theirs. He has been involved in many pursuits that are of interest to him. He enjoys the opportunity to speak to interested audiences about his life and vision. First and foremost is his participation as Chairman CEO of Ad Astra Rocket Company. He also speaks about climate changes and tries to get young people motivated about environmental issues. He has now published his first book, and is a Professor in Physics and Astronomy at Rice University.

He believes a large measure of his good fortune was due to the help that he received from many others during those formative years. He is a very humble man. Franklin Chang-Diaz became a U.S. Citizen. He also studied hard to become a scientist. He was the first Hispanic person to enter the space program. He was also a veteran of six space missions and has spent nearly 1,300 hours in space. He is truly an amazing man.

**__References__**

Wikizap. (2005, October 26). "Talk-Franklin Chang Diaz." //Wikipedia//. Retrieved May 2, 2014, from __ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franklin.Chang __
 * This page from Wikipedia provides details about Franklin Chang Diaz’s family, education and career.

Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center (2012, September) "Astronaut Bio: Franklin Chang-Diaz." //National Aeronautics and Space Administration.// Retrieved May 2, 2014, from []
 * This website article is a biological listing of Franklin Chang-Diaz’s education, career and accomplishments.

Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., (2014. Web.) "Franklin Chang-Diaz" //Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online//. Retrieved May 9, 2014 from [|__http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/1168765/Franklin-Chang-Diaz__].
 * This article highlights Franklin Chang Diaz’s accomplishments.

http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/chang.html