Okay, so maybe we aren’t actually launching the Atlantis, but in a round about way, we’ll be there as American astronaut of Mexican heritage, José Hernández, piggybacks our Mexican flag and corn tortillas into space with him on Tuesday.

“Estando ahí arriba los 13 que estemos juntos, oficialmente vamos a representar a cinco países, y yo le digo que realmente son seis, porque le digo que no dejen que se quede México atrás”, dijo Hernández durante la conversación que sostuvo con el Mandatario.
-American astronaut, Jose Hernandez
-El Norte

Once we are up there, the 13 of us together, we will officially represent five countries, but I say there will actually be six, because we can’t leave Mexico behind.- Jose Hernandez

During a telephone conversation, President Calderon congratulated Hernandez and made a firm promise that Mexico will continue it’s quest to create it’s own space agency and dedicate more funds to science and technology.

Hernandez, on his part, offered to take the Mexican flag with him and upon returning from space has promised to visit Calderon in Los Pinos for a typical carnitas meal and hand deliver the space baptized flag to the President.

The NASA engineer, who hopes to be a role model for Mexican youth, was born in La Piedad, a small town in Michoacan which is also the birth state of Calderon, and as a child emigrated with his parents to California to work the fields.

The Atlantis on Tuesday, for the first time in NASA history, will include corn tortillas on it’s space menu for Hernandez to continue enjoying his Mexican tacos in his home away from home.