Ellison Onizuka

Ellison Shoji Onizuka (鬼塚 承次, Onizuka Shōji?, June 24, 1946 - January 28, 1986) was a Japanese American astronaut from Kealakekua, Kona, Hawaii, who successfully flew into space with the Space Shuttle Discovery on STS-51-C, before losing his life to the destruction of the Space Shuttle Challenger, where he was serving as Mission Specialist for mission STS-51-L. He was the first Asian American to reach space.