Sirisha Bandla facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Sirisha Bandla
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|---|---|
| Born |
Guntur, Andhra Pradesh, India
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| Status | Active |
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | Purdue University, George Washington University |
| Space career | |
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Current occupation
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Vice President of Government Affairs and Research Operations, Virgin Galactic |
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Previous occupation
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Commercial Astronaut |
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Time in space
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14 min 17 seconds |
| Selection | Virgin Galactic |
| Missions | Virgin Galactic Unity 22 |
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Mission insignia
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Sirisha Bandla (Telugu: బండ్ల శిరీష) was born around 1988. She is an amazing Indian-American engineer and astronaut. Sirisha works for a company called Virgin Galactic. She is the Vice President of Government Affairs and Research Operations there.
Sirisha flew on the Virgin Galactic Unity 22 mission. This made her the second woman born in India to travel to space. She was also the fourth person of Indian heritage to cross the Kármán line, which is the official boundary of space. Other famous astronauts of Indian descent include Rakesh Sharma, Kalpana Chawla, and Sunita Williams.
Early Life and Learning
Sirisha Bandla was born in the Guntur district of Andhra Pradesh, India. Her family is Telugu and Hindu. After she was born, her family moved to Tenali, also in Andhra Pradesh.
Until she was five, Sirisha spent time at her grandfather's house in Hyderabad and her grandmother's house in Tenali. Later, she moved to Houston, United States, with her parents.
Sirisha studied aeronautical engineering at Purdue University. She earned her bachelor's degree there. After that, she got her master's degree in business from George Washington University.
Her Journey to Space
Sirisha always dreamed of becoming an astronaut for NASA. However, she couldn't join NASA because of her eyesight. But that didn't stop her!
She first worked as an aerospace engineer for the Commercial Spaceflight Federation. She also helped start the Matthew Isakowitz Fellowship to honor a friend.
In 2015, Sirisha joined Virgin Galactic. She became the vice president of government affairs. This means she helps Virgin Galactic work with the government.
Flying on Unity 22
On July 11, 2021, Sirisha flew on the Virgin Galactic Unity 22 test flight. She was with Sir Richard Branson, the founder of Virgin Galactic, and other crew members. The rocket plane flew about 85 kilometers (53 miles) above Earth.
This flight qualified the crew as FAA commercial astronauts. During the flight, Sirisha did a special experiment. She studied how plants react to changes in gravity. This experiment was from the University of Florida.
Her grandfather, Dr. Bandla Ragaiah, was very proud. He said Sirisha always wanted to explore the sky, moon, and stars. He wasn't surprised she achieved her dream. Sirisha reached a height of 89.9 kilometers (55.9 miles) during her spaceflight. Because Unity 22 was the first fully crewed test flight for Virgin Galactic, Sirisha received commercial astronaut wings from the Federal Aviation Authority.
In December 2022, Sirisha was honored as one of the BBC 100 Women. This list celebrates inspiring women from around the world.
More to Explore
- List of Asian American astronauts
- List of female spacefarers
- Telugu Americans
