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Franklin Chang-Díaz

Franklin Chang Díaz, Costa Rican-Chinese American astronaut and physicist

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Born
April 5, 1950
Age in 2026
76
Zodiac sign
Aries
Birth year
1950

About Franklin Chang-Díaz

Franklin Ramon Chang-Díaz is a Costa Rica born mechanical engineer, physicist, and former NASA astronaut. He is the sole founder and CEO of Ad Astra Rocket Company as well as a member of the Cummins' board of directors. He became a U. S. citizen in 1977. Chang-Díaz was selected as an astronaut candidate by NASA in 1980, and first flew aboard Space Shuttle mission STS-61-C in 1986. In 2014, Chang-Díaz was awarded the "Buzz Aldrin Quadrennial Space Award" by The Explorers Club. He is a veteran of seven Space Shuttle missions, tying the record, as of 2021 for the most spaceflights (a record set two months earlier by Jerry L.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

Franklin Chang-Díaz timeline

  1. He became a U. S. citizen in 1977.
  2. Chang-Díaz was selected as an astronaut candidate by NASA in 1980, and first flew aboard Space Shuttle mission STS-61-C in 1986.
  3. In 2014, Chang-Díaz was awarded the "Buzz Aldrin Quadrennial Space Award" by The Explorers Club.
  4. He is a veteran of seven Space Shuttle missions, tying the record, as of 2021 for the most spaceflights (a record set two months earlier by Jerry L.

The world when Franklin Chang-Díaz was born

Franklin Chang-Díaz was born in 1950. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Culture in 1950

  • #1 song"Goodnight, Irene" – The Weavers
  • Top movieAll About Eve
  • Top TV showTexaco Star Theater
  • Best-selling bookThe Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe – C.S. Lewis

Headlines and milestones

  • Major sports momentUSA beats England 1-0 in the FIFA World Cup
  • Top headlineKorean War begins as North Korea invades the South
  • Technology milestoneFirst credit card introduced (Diners Club)
  • Defining fadPoodle skirts
  • Notable inventionCredit card (Diners Club)
  • World population2.56 billion

United States snapshot

  • U.S. leaderHarry S. Truman
  • Sports championNew York Yankees (World Series)
  • Also wonMinneapolis Lakers (NBA)
  • U.S. population151.3M

1950 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in Franklin Chang-Díaz's birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure19502026
Gas$0.27$3.45/gal
Average home$8,450$435,000
Average income$5,200$67,500
Minimum wage$0.75$7.25/hr (federal)
Movie ticket$0.46$11.95
Postage stamp$0.03$0.73
Population151.3M341 million

Sources and editorial standards

This profile combines a biographical source with structured birthday and historical context. Sources recorded for this profile: Wikipedia, Encyclopaedia Britannica, Library of Congress. See our editorial policy for sourcing, corrections, and review standards.

Read the source biography on Wikipedia. Wikipedia text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.