Ilan Ramon (June 20, 1954 - February 1, 2003; Hebrew: אילן רמון) was a fighter pilot in the Israeli Air Force, and later the first Israeli astronaut. Ramon was the space shuttle payload specialist of STS-107, the fatal mission of Columbia, where he and six other crew members were killed in a re-entry accident over southern Texas. Ilan Ramon is the only foreign recipient of the United States Congressional Space Medal of Honor.
Ramon was born in R...
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Ilan Ramon (June 20, 1954 - February 1, 2003; Hebrew: אילן רמון) was a fighter pilot in the Israeli Air Force, and later the first Israeli astronaut. Ramon was the space shuttle payload specialist of STS-107, the fatal mission of Columbia, where he and six other crew members were killed in a re-entry accident over southern Texas. Ilan Ramon is the only foreign recipient of the United States Congressional Space Medal of Honor.
Ramon was born in Ramat Gan, Israel, and grew up in Beersheba. His mother and grandmother were survivors of the Auschwitz concentration camp . The name Ilan means "tree" in Hebrew.
Although considered a secular Jew, Ramon reportedly sought to follow Jewish observances while in orbit. In an interview he said, "I feel I am representing all Jews and all Israelis." He was the first spaceflight participant to request kosher food. He reportedly sought advice from a Chabad Lubavitch rabbi, Zvi Konikov, about how to observe the Jewish Sabbath in space, as the period...
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