Rodolfo Neri Vela

Rodolfo Neri Vela, an engineer born in Chilpancingo, Guerrero, became the first Mexican astronaut in November 1985, flying as a payload specialist aboard the space shuttle Atlantis on mission STS-61-B. During that flight the crew deployed the Mexican communications satellite Morelos II. Don’t confuse him with José Hernández, a NASA astronaut of Mexican descent born in the United States who flew in 2009, or with Katya Echazarreta, who in 2022 became the first Mexican-born woman to travel to space.