[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 184 (Wednesday, October 20, 2021)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1119]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          HONORING THE ACCOMPLISHMENTS OF FRANKLIN CHANG-DIAZ

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. BRIAN BABIN

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, October 20, 2021

  Mr. BABIN. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor Dr. Franklin Chang-
Diaz for being selected as one of the 100 Most Intriguing Entrepreneurs 
of 2021 at Goldman Sachs's Builders + Innovators Summit in Healdsburg, 
California.
  Selected as one of 100 entrepreneurs from a diverse range of 
groundbreaking industries. Dr. Chang-Diaz currently serves as the Chief 
Executive Officer of Ad Astra Rocket Company in Webster, TX. He spent 
25 years as a decorated NASA astronaut, flying seven missions into 
space. When he retired from NASA in 2005, he founded the Ad Astra 
Rocket Company to continue the development of his invention, the 
Variable Specific Impulse Magnetoplasma Rocket (VASIMR) engine.
  The VASlMR engine is an advanced plasma space propulsion system that 
will revolutionize space travel. With VASIMR, a sustainable, efficient, 
and high-powered engine, we can stay longer and travel further in 
space. Dr. Franklin Chang-Diaz and his company. Ad Astra, are 
transforming the trajectory of our space industry.
  Using plasma physics to bring the advanced rocket technology to life, 
Ad Astra plans to commercialize the VASIMR engine by 2025 for the 
emerging in-space transportation market. The VASIMR engine's 
capabilities will vastly change how we think about space travel. 
Transit to Mars will be shorter by several months, enabling more robust 
human missions to the Red Planet and beyond.
  Madam Speaker, I would like to honor Dr. Franklin Chang-Diaz for his 
extraordinary achievements and leadership in the field of space 
transportation.

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