Dr. Ellen Ochoa is an accomplished engineer, former astronaut, and pioneering leader in space exploration. Born May 10, 1958, in Los Angeles, California, Dr. Ochoa earned his bachelor’s degree in physics from San Diego State University and his master’s and doctoral degrees in electrical engineering from Stanford University. Before joining NASA, Dr. Ochoa conducted pioneering research on optical systems for image processing and computer vision.
In 1993, she became the first Hispanic woman to travel in space, serving aboard the Space Shuttle discovery. During his NASA career, he spent nearly 1,000 hours in orbit during four space missions. Beyond his accomplishments as an astronaut, Dr. Ochoa made history as the first Hispanic director of NASA’s Johnson Space Center. There, he championed diversity, STEM education, and innovation in human spaceflight.
Request. What does it mean to you to be a role model for the Latino community through your historic accomplishments?
Answer. What has been truly wonderful over the past 30 years is the opportunity I have been given to reach so many people. Of course, when I was still at NASA as an astronaut, I talked to a lot of schools, and a lot of them were schools with a high Hispanic enrollment, and I’m sure they had never seen anyone like me before. So, I was always excited to go there. And since then I’ve continued to do outreach, speaking to a wide variety of audiences, but also doing podcasts, I’ve written some bilingual children’s books about science and engineering. I just had all these different ways to be able to get kids thinking about science and engineering, STEM careers, or even just setting a high goal for themselves, no matter what they’re interested in. And that was extremely rewarding.
Q. How has being Latina influenced your career and how have you faced those challenges?
TO. I always have to think about the people who came before me and who allowed me to take on this role. When I was a student in college, NASA selected the first female astronauts and the first astronauts of color. This was a huge milestone due to all the people in the women’s rights movement in the 70s. And even going much further back, we see that they also fought for women’s right to vote. And without all of this happening, the government would not have opened jobs to women, including astronauts. So, going forward since I flew into space, I’ve been able to have an effect and continue on that path, hopefully giving inspiration to a lot of people. I feel like I’m just one in a long line of people who have had the opportunity to try to get the same kind of rights for everyone who didn’t have them before.
Q. Have you ever met people who thanked you for making their journey easier?
TO. Absolutely! It’s always really rewarding when someone comes to me and says, “When I was in school, I read about you and was inspired to study science and engineering. Especially when I know that role models made a big impression on me. Sally Ride flew while I was getting my doctorate, and that made a huge difference. Seeing her in space and knowing that she majored in physics and attended Stanford, where I was working on my doctorate, helped me see all those things we had in common, and think, ‘Well, maybe this It’s something I could do too.”
Q. Of all the major milestones in your career, which moments filled you with the most pride?
TO. Of course, all my space flights. And one thing I’m thinking about, because it’s a couple of weeks away, is a milestone associated with the International Space Station, where it will mark 25 years of continuous time aboard the station by astronauts. I was on two flights that were part of the station assembly. For a while I worked in the Astronaut Office as an astronaut leading the Astronaut Office’s support of the space station program. I made several trips to Russia, developing protocols on how to train crews and select them. Now, I still see it going strong after 25 years, not only with the original five international space agencies representing 15 countries, but more than 100 countries have been involved in some way, either with scientists carrying out experiments on board or with educational activities. It really became something that I think surpassed what we were thinking about when we were working on it.
Q. We Are All Human Gala honored on October 30 for your leadership and contributions. What does receiving this recognition mean to you?
TO. It kind of came out of nowhere. The event celebrates and recognizes the contributions of Hispanics in the United States, such as economic progress, innovation and culture. I am very proud to be recognized.
Q. To celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, a new Barbie Inspiring Women doll has been released in your honor. What was your reaction when you found out you were getting your own Barbie doll?
TO. This was another thing that came out of the blue and surprised me. About a year ago, Mattel, the Barbie line, contacted me. They described a series called Inspiring Women. They had already made about 20 other dolls in the series, including historical figures like Susan B. Anthony and Amelia Earhart. They worked with me all year on the doll, including what I would wear. They really wanted to focus on my first space flight. That’s why I wear the orange throw and entry suit.
Q. How would you like to be remembered?
TO. First of all, everything we do at NASA is a team effort. I always tell students that to be a good astronaut, you have to be good at teamwork. I hope people understand that I was only able to accomplish what I did at NASA because of the great team around me. This was certainly true when I was director of the Johnson Space Center. Ultimately, I hope people understand that with hard work, determination and support, the sky is not the limit.
Q. What advice would you give to young Latinas who dream of pursuing a career like yours?
TO. I would say, “We need you.” We need as many bright minds as possible, as well as people who are interested, motivated and willing to work hard. It’s important to continue doing this. I think what really helped me was finding my own personal supporters. For every professor who discouraged me, there was another who supported and encouraged me and told me to keep going. I always had people like that, which really helped me, especially when I met people who didn’t think women or Latinos should do what I wanted to do.
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