US Ambassador Marc Knapper met Lieutenant General Pham Tuan - the first Vietnamese to fly into space, on the evening of April 14 - Photo: US EMBASSY IN HANOI
According to the official Facebook page of the US Embassy in Hanoi , on the evening of April 14, US Ambassador to Vietnam Marc Knapper held a meeting with Lieutenant General Pham Tuan - the first Vietnamese person to fly into space, and representatives from the Vietnam Space Center, to watch the moment Amanda Nguyen became the first Vietnamese-American woman to fly into space.
"Iconic Journey"
"On the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the US and Vietnam, Amanda's journey - bringing lotus seeds from Vietnam into orbit - is not only a milestone. It is also a symbol of the journey that the two countries have traveled and the future that the two countries are looking forward to together," the Embassy stated in a post on the morning of April 15.
US Ambassador Marc Knapper and Lieutenant General Pham Tuan watched the historic flight that brought Amanda Nguyen to become the first Vietnamese-American woman to travel to space - Photo: FACEBOOK US EMBASSY IN HANOI
At 8:30 a.m. on April 14, US local time (8:30 p.m. on the same day, Vietnam time), Amanda Nguyen successfully completed an 11-minute space trip (from takeoff to landing) with the crew of Blue Origin's NS-31 mission.
The New Shepard spacecraft lifted off from Launch Pad 1 in Texas, carrying the NS-31 crew across the Kármán line - the space boundary at an altitude of 100km above sea level.
The NS-31 mission is not only a milestone for gender in commercial spaceflight, but also an inspiration for women and girls to enter STEM fields. The crew affirms that women can combine their passion for science with their individuality.
Notably, this is the first all-female crew flight in more than 60 years, since Russian cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova flew solo into space in 1963 on the Vostok 6 spacecraft.
Amanda Nguyen Says "Hello Vietnam" From Space - Video: BLUE ORIGIN
From the crew compartment, Amanda Nguyen and the members of NS-31 were able to admire the deep black universe and the curve of the Earth in a state of zero gravity.
In particular, she also sent greetings to Vietnam from space: "Hello Vietnam", she said in Vietnamese.
The Vietnam National Space Center (VNSC) has provided 169 lotus seeds (Nelumbo nucifera) to astronaut Amanda Nguyen to accompany her into space. These lotus seeds will return after the mission to open up research on the effects of space on growth, contributing to plant science and space exploration.
Anyone can heal
Amanda Nguyen says "Hello Vietnam" while in space - Photo: CUT FROM VIDEO BLUE ORIGIN
Amanda Nguyen was born in 1991 in California, USA, graduated from Harvard University and interned at NASA. Putting aside her dream of becoming an astronaut after being raped, she founded the organization Rise in 2014 to protect the civil rights of victims of sexual assault.
"In this moment, I just want everyone who has experienced trauma to know: You can heal. No dream is too crazy. And if it's really too far-fetched, like flying into space, you can absolutely overcome it, and it can absolutely come true," Amanda Nguyen said emotionally as she returned to the ground.
During the flight, Amanda carried two zero-gravity indicators (objects that astronauts carry to mark the moment when weightlessness begins).
It was a note she wrote to herself years before she decided to put her astronaut dream on hold to fight for civil rights, promising that she would return to it.
The second item was the hospital bracelet she wore when she was examined after being sexually assaulted. "Today, I was able to honor her," Amanda Nguyen said, breaking down in tears.
In 2016, the Sexual Assault Survivors Bill of Rights, championed by Amanda Nguyen, was passed by the US Congress and signed into law by President Barack Obama.
Amanda was nominated for the 2019 Nobel Peace Prize, named one of Time Magazine's Women of the Year 2022, and received numerous other international awards in recognition of her work for survivors of sexual violence.
45 years ago, Hero of the People's Armed Forces, Lieutenant General, pilot Pham Tuan was the first Vietnamese to fly into space.
On July 23, 1980, Mr. Pham Tuan and Soviet cosmonaut Viktor Vassilyevich Gorbatko made a space flight on the Soyz 37 spacecraft.
He spent 7 days, 20 hours and 42 minutes in space before returning on July 31, after 142 orbits around the Earth. During his time in orbit, he conducted many scientific experiments and took photos of Vietnam from Earth orbit.
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Source: https://tuoitre.vn/dai-su-my-cung-trung-tuong-pham-tuan-xem-khoanh-khac-amanda-nguyen-bay-vao-vu-tru-20250415103459871.htm
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