India's space odyssey: From ancient stargazers to lunar landings
After gaining Independence, precisely 78 years ago on August 15, 1947, India emerged onto the global scientific stage just as the Cold War began, and the USA and USSR embarked on a fierce Space Race. While the superpowers competed for supremacy, India took a different path, one rooted in harnessing space technology to address developmental challenges.
That same year, Dr Vikram Sarabhai (1919-1971), hailed as the father of India's space programme, founded the Physical Research Laboratory (PRL) in Ahmedabad. He initially focused on cosmic ray and upper-atmosphere research, gradually expanding into broader space science. Sarabhai envisioned that space technology could aid national development, especially in weather forecasting, telecommunications, and resource management.
India's space journey began in 1961 when Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru placed space research under the Department of Atomic Energy. A year later, the Indian National Committee for Space Research (INCOSPAR) was established under Dr. Homi J. Bhabha, with Vikram Sarabhai as chairman. Thumba in Kerala, near the magnetic equator, was chosen as the site for the Thumba Equatorial Rocket Launching Station (TERLS). A local church became the first control room. On November 21, 1963, India launched its first rocket, a Nike-Apache, with parts transported on bicycles.
INCOSPAR evolved into the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on August 15, 1969. In 1972, ISRO was brought under the newly formed Department of Space (DOS). India's first satellite, Aryabhata, was launched in 1975.
In 1971, ISRO set up the Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) in Sriharikota. India's first satellite launch vehicle, SLV-3, flew in 1979. The 1981 launch of the experimental satellite APPLE from French Guiana paved the way for the INSAT series, starting in 1982, supporting weather, telecom, and broadcasting services.
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