30 Facts About Anousheh Ansari

Anousheh Ansari is an Iranian-American engineer, space tourist, and entrepreneur.

Anousheh Ansari is the co-founder and chairwoman of Prodea Systems, and her previous business accomplishments include serving as co-founder and chief executive officer of Telecom Technologies, Inc On September 18,2006, a few days after her 40th birthday, she became the first Iranian person to be in outer space.

Anousheh Ansari is the chief executive officer of the XPRIZE Foundation, and the Ansari family is the title sponsor of the Ansari X Prize.

Anousheh Ansari has a sister, Atousa Raissyan, who is five years younger.

At the age of six, Anousheh Ansari would visit her grandparents and sleep overnight on the balcony, as there was no air conditioning.

In Tehran, at the age of seven, Anousheh Ansari attended a French Catholic school called Jeanne d'Arc.

Anousheh Ansari witnessed the Iranian Revolution in 1979 and recalls memories of "hearing gun shots, screaming, people being killed, and explosions".

Anousheh Ansari would narrate stories to them, offering them comfort, which distracted them from the noise of bombs being dropped outside.

Anousheh Ansari immigrated to the United States in 1984 as a teenager, and attended a high school in Northern Virginia, Lake Braddock.

Anousheh Ansari received her Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering and computer science at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia, and her master's degree at George Washington University in Washington DC.

Anousheh Ansari is a member of the X PRIZE Foundation's Vision Circle, as well as its Board of Trustees.

The Anousheh Ansari family invested in a partnership with Space Adventures, Ltd.

Anousheh Ansari trained as a backup for Daisuke Enomoto for a Soyuz flight to the International Space Station, through Space Adventures, Ltd.

The next day Anousheh Ansari was elevated to the prime crew.

Anousheh Ansari lifted off on the Soyuz TMA-9 mission with commander Mikhail Tyurin and flight engineer Michael Lopez-Alegria at 04:59 on Monday, September 18,2006, from Baikonur, Kazakhstan.

Anousheh Ansari's contract did not allow for disclosure of the amount paid, but previous space tourists have paid more than $20 million USD.

Anousheh Ansari landed safely aboard Soyuz TMA-8 on September 29,2006, at 01:13 UTC on the steppes of Kazakhstan with US astronaut Jeffrey Williams and Russian cosmonaut Pavel Vinogradov.

Anousheh Ansari was given red roses from an unidentified official, and a kiss from her husband, Hamid.

Anousheh Ansari became the first person to publish a weblog from space.

The flight was given significant coverage by Iranian state television, with an hour-long live interview with Anousheh Ansari being broadcast on the show Asemane Shab.

Anousheh Ansari was praised by newspapers such as Hambastegi and Jam-e-Jam Daily, which published daily columns detailing the journey.

Anousheh Ansari was listed in Fortune Magazines 40 under 40 list in 2001 and honored by Working Woman as the winner of the 2000 National Entrepreneurial Excellence award.

Anousheh Ansari received an Honorary Doctorate of Science from her alma mater George Mason University on December 20,2012.

The Anousheh Ansari family was honored with an Orbit Award by the National Space Society and Space Tourism Society for underwriting the Anousheh Ansari X Prize.

Anousheh Ansari participated as a speaker at the 2010 Honeywell Leadership Academy with Homer Hickam at United States Space Camp in Huntsville, Alabama.

In 2009, Anousheh Ansari was featured in the documentary film Space Tourists by independent Swiss filmmaker Christian Frei about billionaires who paid to ride to the International Space Station aboard Russian spacecraft.

Anousheh Ansari was the commencement speaker and received an Honorary Doctorate of Science from Utah Valley University on April 25,2013.

Anousheh Ansari has served on the boards of directors for Make-a-Wish Foundation of North Texas and Collin County Children's Advocacy Center.

Anousheh Ansari has been active with several nonprofit organizations, including the nonprofit Iranian American Women Foundation organization.

Anousheh Ansari is the aunt of the American actors Yara Shahidi and Sayeed Shahidi.