![an old man wearing a suit drapes a medal around the neck of a smiling woman in a blue dress.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/K9PM9qYPirUzzHECXUQy5R-200-80.jpg)
NASA astronaut and director Ellen Ochoa awarded Presidential Medal of Freedom
The first Hispanic woman to launch into space is now the second female astronaut to be awarded the United States' highest honor. Ellen Ochoa was bestowed with the Presidential Medal of Freedom.