Udupi Ramachandra Rao, the man who made India's satellite dreams take off

Despite his busy schedule as working engineer and administrator, he never lost touch with academia

Udupi Ramachandra Rao, who died in Bengaluru on Monday, was one of the pioneers of India's space programme. He was a member of the team that designed and launched India's first satellite, the Aryabhata, in 1975. Rao was the first director of the Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro)'s Satellite Centre. Later, as the chairman of Isro during 1984-94, he was primarily responsible for the development of the the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) and also initiated the research that eventually resulted in the more ambitious Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV).  
 

Born on March 10, 1932, Rao received his MSc in physics from Benares Hindu University in 1953 and a PhD from Gujarat University in 1960. His long association with the space programme began when he was a research scholar. His PhD guide was none other than the legendary Vikram Sarabhai, the first Isro chairman. 

In 1961, Rao started a teaching assignment at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He later taught at the University of Texas, Dallas, and did a stint of research at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab in Pasadena, California. He returned to India in 1966 to take up a teaching post at the Physical Research Lab (PRL), Ahmedabad, and serving as chairman of the Governing Council of  PRL at the time of his demise. He was also the chancellor of the Indian Institute of Science and Technology, Thiruvananthapuram.

Despite his busy schedule as a working engineer and administrator, he never lost touch with academia. Over the course of his life, he published about 350 scientific papers. His research covered cosmic rays, interplanetary physics, high energy astronomy, space applications, satellite and rocket technology, among other topics. 

The INSAT programme was entirely his baby, being conceptualised, and operationalised during his tenure as chairman of Isro. Isro also built and launched the first remote-sensing satellites, the IRS series, during his tenure. Rao had to deal with the impact of multiple American sanctions that slowed the development of the cryogenic GSLV. He had to find ways to indigenise many components, which could no longer be imported due to those sanctions. In that sense, he also helped to lay the foundations for the Indian aerospace industry. 

He was respected in the international space community and a prime mover in negotiating the peaceful internationalisation of space. He is a member of the Hall of Fame of the International Astronautical Federation, and received multiple national and international awards, including the Padma Bhushan and Padma Vibhusan.