In November 1997, Kalpana Chawla became the first woman of Indian origin to travel in space as the mission specialist and primary robotic arm operator aboard the US space shuttle Columbia. In December 2006, Sunita Williams became the second woman of Indian origin to venture into space when the US shuttle Discovery rose into the night sky on a 12-day repair mission to the International Space Station (ISS). A general physician, 32-year-old Shawna Pandya is one of two candidates shortlisted from 3,200 people enrolled in the Citizen Science Astronaut (CSA) program. She may fly with eight other astronauts in space missions slated to take off by 2018.

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