Anousheh Ansari

Anousheh Ansari (انوشه انصاری, born September 12, 1966 in Mashhad, Iran) is an engineer and the Iranian-American co-founder and chairman of Prodea Systems, Inc and a spaceflight participant with the Russian space program. Her previous business accomplishments include serving as co-founder and CEO of Telecom Technologies, Inc. (TTI). The Ansari family is also the title sponsor of the Ansari X PRIZE. On September 18, 2006, a few days after her 40th birthday, she became the first Muslim female in space. Ansari is the fourth overall self-funded space tourist, and the first self-funded woman to fly to the International Space Station.