Tuesday, February 13, 2007

Plano entrepreneur to write book about her travels in space

By Pegasus News wire

PLANO — The world’s first private female space explorer (and Plano's Space Ambassador), Anousheh Ansari is writing a memoir of her life experiences with the assistance of Homer Hickam, author of the No. 1 New York Times best-seller Rocket Boys which was made into the critically acclaimed movie October Sky.

Ansari serves as chairman and co-founder of Plano-based Prodea Systems, which will help consumers realize the full potential of their digital homes.

Photo not provided by Prodea Systems

Ansari, who always dreamed of becoming an astronaut, left her home country of Iran for the United States at age 16. Her memoir will describe Ansari’s early struggles as an immigrant who could not speak English, her education as a student who earned a master’s degree in engineering in just a few years, and her astonishing success as a businesswoman. In addition, the book will recount Ansari’s historic trip to the International Space Station, from her selection and training for the mission to takeoff, landing and everything between.

An active proponent of world-changing technologies, Ansari followed up her business success with an entrepreneurial focus on space. She rallied her family to provide the title sponsorship for the Ansari X Prize. This $10 million prize became the catalyst for a new era in private space travel. The prize was awarded to Burt Rutan in 2004 for the first non-governmental launch of a reusable manned spacecraft into space.

On Sept. 18, 2006, Ansari blasted off from Kazakhstan on board a Russian Soyuz capsule and became the first astronaut of Iranian descent, the first private female space explorer and the fourth person to buy a ticket to space from Space Adventures. After two days orbiting the Earth, Ansari and her fellow crew members docked with the International Space Station. She spent the next eight days on board as an active member of the crew.

Ansari recounted highlights of her journey to space in a blog that attracted more than 25 million readers worldwide, making it one of the most popular blogs ever written. For more information, check out her website.

Source: Prodea Systems

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