In the past week and a half, the United States and the world have mourned the seven astronauts of the Columbia space shuttle disaster with a quiet reverence.

Along with the mourning and memorials has come a renewed interest in the U.S. space program, in the astronauts and what they do, and in what role space exploration will play in the nation's future.

The attention has reawakened a sense of awe in scientific and engineering discoveries, and for now at least, Americans are treating those who make such discoveries with admiration and respect.

And that is just what such discoveries deserve. Everywhere, every day, astronauts, engineers and scientists perform magical feats in the form of flying space shuttles, designing circuits and discovering wonder drugs.

The seven Columbia crew members had their own sense of reverence about their mission. No matter the risk, they performed it for the good of mankind, for the advancement of science and the furtherance of the world's knowledge of space.

The extraordinary crew of STS-107-two medical doctors, four engineers and a physicist-were on a mission designed to carry out scientific experiments that would help develop medicines to treat several diseases.

Among these heroes was Kalpana Chawla, an aerospace engineer and FAA-certified flight instructor, who was the first Indian-American woman to fly a U.S. space shuttle. Her first shuttle mission was STS-87, in November 1997.

Chawla had traveled 6.5 million miles in 252 orbits and logged 376 hours and 34 minutes in space. In many ways, her determination, intelligence and curiosity characterize all who follow science and engineering pursuits.

Born in Karnal, India, in 1961, she entered the field of aeronautical engineering against her family's wishes and in 1982 became the first woman to earn a bachelor's degree in the major at Punjab Engineering College.

Chawla traveled to the United States and earned a master's of science degree in aerospace engineering from the University of Texas, in 1984, and a PhD in aerospace engineering from the University of Colorado in 1988.

Chawla was selected by NASA in December 1994 and reported to the Johnson Space Center in Houston in March 1995 as an astronaut candidate in the 15th Group of Astronauts. Among her classmates was Rick Husband, the commander of the STS-107 Columbia shuttle flight and a colonel in the U.S. Air Force.

Chawla, Husband and all the Columbia crew members are heroes, for their courage, and for their ultimate sacrifice. We honor them in a big way as humans, as American and international citizens, and as talented scientists and engineers.