ISRO Chief

The Space Docking Experiment (SpaDEX) is scheduled to launch by the year-end. It will be India's first mission showcasing autonomous docking technology in space

India must undergo a revolutionary transformation to rise as a developed economy, said ISRO Chairman S. Somanathan, stressing the importance of technological advancements and product development to drive economic growth. He also praised tech mogul Elon Musk for his innovative work in the space sector, noting that Musk's achievements have inspired global efforts, including those within ISRO. Somanathan made these remarks while addressing students at the 13th convocation ceremony of the Indraprastha Institute of Information Technology (IIIT) in Delhi here on Saturday. "If India aspires to become the third, second, or even the first-largest global economy, a revolutionary change is needed. Growth will not be driven by trade and resources alone. We need to create value in technology that powers product development," he said. Speaking about Musk, the ISRO chief said, "Elon Musk is making heads turn with his rockets. Everyone, from Europe to Russia to China, is looking at what he is doin

Somanath further said, In the domain of communication, a lot of changes are happening in this domain,

Although Gaganyaan is ready for launch by the end of the year, we should proceed with caution, said Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) Chairman S Somanath on Friday. Gaganyaan, which is among the projects approved by the Union cabinet on Wednesday, is India's first human mission. I don't want what happened to the Boeing Starliner, so we should be very careful, added Somanath. The first test flight of Boeing Starliner spacecraft with astronauts, launched by NASA on June 5 returned to Earth on September 7, but without the astronauts. Due to unforeseen circumstances, the astronauts Sunitha Williams and Butch Wilmore were forced to extend their eight-day stay in the International Space to eight months, as they will now be picked up by SpaceX Crew Dragon in February. Somanath also stressed the importance of exploring Venus. The Venus Orbiter Mission (VOM) is also among the four projects approved by the Union cabinet and it has been allocated Rs 1,236 crore. "Tomorrow Earth may

In this era, when infrastructure built over the years is vulnerable to cyber attacks, it is very important to build an ecosystem to develop cyber security tools and solutions, Indian Space Research Organisation Chairman S Somanath said on Thursday. He laid the foundation stone for 'Cyber Nalanda', a state-of-the-art cyber security research and development centre, the brainchild of SISA, a global forensics-driven cybersecurity solutions company, that is coming up in Bengaluru. "I was from a generation of engineers who started their career without knowing computers. The transitioning from that time to now has been tremendous," said Somanath. According to him, at one point, security was nothing but anti-virus. "But now, as applications are expanding, threats are also expanding. Cyber security threat is not limited to theft of personal data alone. It is now at a much greater scale -- it is also to do with the security of the nation itself," said Somanath. He pointed out that the vario

Isro recently commissioned a study to gauge the impact of space missions on the economy

More than 10 companies and consortia have evinced interest in manufacturing the Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV), with a few being shortlisted as potential bidders for the transfer of technology, ISRO chairman S Somanath said on Tuesday. He said the selected industry partner will first develop two SSLVs with assistance from ISRO over a two year period before venturing out on its own to build rockets to place small satellites in low earth orbits. "More than 100 groups/consortia had come forward and showed interest in transfer of technology for the SSLV," he told reporters on the sidelines of an event organised by the AICTE and Indian Space Association. Somanath said IN-SPACe had organised a one-day interaction with industry players to understand issues that they may have related to technology transfer and how to do it, and expectations from ISRO for them. He said a few companies/consortia have taken the Request for Proposals (RFP) documents for transfer of technology for the .

In view of the recent natural disasters like the landslide in Kerala, where many people are trapped under debris, ISRO chairman S Somanath on Saturday said only a certain depth of filtration is possible with space technology and could not be relied on for finding those people. The ISRO chief was answering a question in this regard in the outreach programme organised by ISRO, #asksomanatisro on Instagram. There are limitations of space-based sensors to locate objects that are buried under debris, which is currently an issue. It is not possible to detect what is deep under the ground from space. A certain depth of filtration is always possible by radar signals, but it is not possible to find, say, underground channels or petroleum deposits and deep minerals, added Somanath. Answering another question during #asksomanathisro, on the Space Flight Agreement with NASA-identified service provider announced on August 2, through which two Gaganyatris' will train to be backup mission pilots,

Isro chief S Somanath expressed willingness to accommodate PM Modi on a future spaceflight, highlighting the ongoing development of human spaceflight capability

The Ministry of Education said Saturday it has constituted a high-level committee of experts led by former ISRO chief K Radhakrishnan to ensure transparent, smooth and fair conduct of examinations through the National Testing Agency (NTA). The seven-member committee will make recommendations on reforms in the mechanism of the examination process, improvement in data security protocols and the structure and functioning of the NTA, the Department of Higher Education in the ministry said. It added that the committee will submit its report to the ministry within two months. Central University of Hyderabad Vice-Chancellor Professor B J Rao and former director of AIIMS Delhi Randeep Guleria are on the panel.

Space sector is expected to get $25 bn in investments in 10 years, says Pawan Goenka, chairman of the commercial arm of Isro

During his visit to Bengaluru, Garcetti also spoke with industry leaders and members of the American Chamber of Commerce India

ISRO Chairman S Somanath on Tuesday announced that India aims to achieve debris-free space missions by 2030. Addressing the 42nd Inter-Agency Space Debris Coordination Committee (IADC) annual meet here, he said ISRO has a very clearly laid out plan as far as space exploration and space utilisation are concerned for the coming days. "It is one of the intent or initiative of India to ensure that debris-free space missions are conducted so as to ensure the sustainability of space. I would like to make this initiative a declaration today, possibly this can be discussed and debated in the coming days," Somanath, also Secretary in the Department of Space, said. "This initiative aims to achieve debris-free space missions by all Indian space actors, governmental and non-governmental, by 2030. India also encourages all state space actors to follow this initiative for long-term sustainability of outer space," he said. "Currently, we have 54 spacecraft in orbit, plus there are non-functional .

ISRO chairman S Somanath has revealed that he learnt about being diagnosed with cancer on the day of the launch of India's Aditya L1 mission. In an interview with Tarmak Media House, Somanath said he underwent an operation to remove the growth in his stomach, followed it up with chemotherapy and was now completely cured of the disease. "Undoubtedly, they would have been shocked. But now, I perceive cancer and its treatment as a solution. There is a message that it is not incurable," he said when asked about the reaction of his family members to the diagnosis. He said he had realized that there were some health issues during the launch of the Chandrayaan-3 mission but was not very clear about it. "I was uncertain about a complete cure at the time, I was undergoing the process," he admitted, highlighting the ongoing nature of his battle against cancer. Somanath said he would be undergoing regular checkups and scans, but he was now completely cured and has resumed duties. "No, I do

ISRO has successfully deployed the magnetometer boom on board the Aditya-L1 satellite to measure the low intensity interplanetary magnetic field in space. The six metre-long magnetometer boom is deployed in the Halo orbit at the Lagrange point L-1, on January 11, the space agency said, noting that the boom had been in stowed condition for 132 days since the Aditya-L1 launch. According to ISRO, the boom carries two state-of-the-art, high-accuracy fluxgate magnetometer sensors that measure the low intensity interplanetary magnetic field in space. "The sensors are deployed at distances of 3 and 6 metres from the spacecraft body. Mounting them at these distances minimises the impact of the spacecraft generated magnetic field on measurements, and using two of them assists precise estimation of this influence. The dual sensor system facilitates cancelling out the spacecraft's magnetic influence," it said. The boom segments are constructed from carbon fibre reinforced polymer and serve a

"Satellite dedicated to the comprehensive study of the Sun," is 'Aditya-L1'. It is India's first space-based observatory-class solar mission launched to undertake a comprehensive study of the Sun

Four test pilots from the Indian Air Force have been selected as astronaut designates for the mission and they are undergoing mission-specific training at the ATF in Bengaluru

Indian Space Research Organisation chairman S Somanath said here on Saturday that the astronauts selected for India's first human space flight programme Gaganyaan are ready and waiting for the flight to happen for the 2025 mission. The Gaganyaan programme aims to send four astronauts into space for a three-day mission in 2025 and bring them back safely to Earth. ISRO, whose Chandrayaan-3 made a historic landing near Moon's south pole in August, is working day and night to develop technology to make it happen, Somanath said. For the first mission we have selected four of them, and it is our endeavour to send them at least by 2025 to space and bring them back safely. Bringing them back safely is a very important element of this mission, Somanath said while addressing graduating students at the 11th convocation of Pandit Deendayal Energy University (PDEU). A lot of technology needs to be developed in the coming days to make it possible. And at ISRO we are working day and night to make

ISRO Chairman S Somanath on Saturday emphasised the necessity of deregulating unnecessary controls in the space sector to foster improved growth. He also attributed India's significant progress in the space industry to the opening up of the sector. Speaking to media here during the celebration of 60 years since India's first sounded rocket launch, Somanath highlighted that the involvement of the private sector in space science development has led to remarkable expansion in India's satellite-building capabilities. "Earlier, it was only ISRO for the development and production of satellites, launch vehicles, and related technologies. ISRO has only 17,000 people and a budget of Rs 13,000 crore. It remained so for all these years," Somanath said. He said that India now has more than 130 startups in the space sector, with some companies boasting a workforce of 400 to 500 employees and a turnover ranging from Rs 500 to 1000 crores. "Some of them are paying better salaries than ISRO, and

ISRO has lined up a series of exploration missions including to Mars, Venus and to the Moon again, apart from the maiden human spaceflight programme, Chairman S Somanath said on Sunday. The space agency also has drawn up plans to launch missions for studying climate and weather conditions of the Earth, the space agency chief said, speaking to reporters. Besides, ISRO is also working on regular scientific missions including communication, remote sensing satellites, Somanath, who is also the Secretary of the Department of Space, said here. Speaking about the Gaganyaan programme, he said the maiden TV-D1 test flight is scheduled for October 21. Elaborating about the upcoming missions undertaken by the Bengaluru-headquartered space agency, he said, We have exploration missions. We have plans to go to Mars, Venus, again sometime to the Moon. We also have programmes to look at the climate and weather of Earth. Stressing that the scientists at ISRO would be focused on taking up regular .