Eugene Hửu-Châu Trịnh was born on September 14, 1950, in Saigon, South Vietnam, he is the first Vietnamese-American to travel into outer space. But of course, he must not be confused with being the first Vietnamese in space ever, an honor which went to the cosmonaut Pham Tuan in 1980. However, he is the first Vietnamese that was born in the former South Vietnam to travel to outer space.

Biography
He was raised from the age of two in Paris, France and has lived in the United States since 1968.

He graduated from Lycee Michelet in Paris, France with a Baccalaureate degree in 1968. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering-Applied Physics from Columbia University in 1972; Masters of Science and of Philosophy and a Doctorate of Philosophy in Applied Physics from Yale University in 1974, 1975, and 1977 respectively.