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Economic Times
01-08-2025
- Science
- Economic Times
India's space achievements win global admiration, says ISRO chief
Thiruvananthapuram, India's space technology has progressed to a level that commands the admiration of even the world's leading powers, ISRO Chairman Dr V Narayanan said here on Friday. He was speaking after inaugurating a conclave on "New Vistas in Critical Minerals and Materials" organised by the CSIR-National Institute for Interdisciplinary Science and Technology (CSIR-NIIST), here as part of its Golden Jubilee year. Narayanan lauded India's remarkable journey in space technology over the past five decades."India's space technology has advanced to such an extent that even leading global powers view it with admiration," he was quoted as saying in an official said that indigenous developments in high-strength stainless steel, advanced composites with low thermal conductivity, and other strategic materials signify the nation's increasing self-reliance. Narayanan called for a collaborative effort between CSIR and ISRO under the National Critical Minerals Mission to drive innovation and achieve technological sovereignty in the field of advanced stated that as the nation completes 77 years of independence, it has achieved significant progress in all sectors, including science and ISRO chairman noted that CSIR has made remarkable contributions to this progress. He praised CSIR's initiatives, ranging from ensuring food security to producing useful materials from remarked that the July 30 launch of NISAR, a collaborative satellite by ISRO and NASA, was a "historic milestone".He said it was "Indian knowledge and Indian experts" who were behind the launch vehicle, a GSLV the country began its space mission with launch rockets gifted by the US, today, India is progressing with equal partnership alongside developed nations, he inaugural session was presided over by Dr C Anandharamakrishnan, Director, CSIR-NIIST. He highlighted the importance of making the country's materials and minerals imports to zero. Eminent scientists, including Dr Ramanuj Narayan (Director, CSIR-IMMT, Bhubaneswar), Dr Sandeep Ghosh Chaudhary (Director, CSIR-NML), Prof U Kamachi Mudali, and Dr Anupam Agnihotri, offered their felicitations and shared insights on the future of critical mineral resources and sustainable material technologies, the release said.
Time of India
01-08-2025
- Science
- Time of India
India's space achievements win global admiration, says ISRO chief
Thiruvananthapuram, India's space technology has progressed to a level that commands the admiration of even the world's leading powers, ISRO Chairman Dr V Narayanan said here on Friday. He was speaking after inaugurating a conclave on "New Vistas in Critical Minerals and Materials " organised by the CSIR-National Institute for Interdisciplinary Science and Technology (CSIR-NIIST), here as part of its Golden Jubilee year. Explore courses from Top Institutes in Please select course: Select a Course Category Artificial Intelligence Data Science PGDM Management Healthcare Degree Data Science Leadership Data Analytics Others healthcare Cybersecurity Technology CXO MBA Finance MCA Design Thinking Public Policy others Operations Management Project Management Digital Marketing Product Management Skills you'll gain: Duration: 7 Months S P Jain Institute of Management and Research CERT-SPJIMR Exec Cert Prog in AI for Biz India Starts on undefined Get Details Narayanan lauded India's remarkable journey in space technology over the past five decades. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like The Simple Morning Habit for a Flatter Belly After 50! Lulutox Undo "India's space technology has advanced to such an extent that even leading global powers view it with admiration," he was quoted as saying in an official release. He said that indigenous developments in high-strength stainless steel, advanced composites with low thermal conductivity, and other strategic materials signify the nation's increasing self-reliance. Live Events Narayanan called for a collaborative effort between CSIR and ISRO under the National Critical Minerals Mission to drive innovation and achieve technological sovereignty in the field of advanced materials. He stated that as the nation completes 77 years of independence, it has achieved significant progress in all sectors, including science and technology. The ISRO chairman noted that CSIR has made remarkable contributions to this progress. He praised CSIR's initiatives, ranging from ensuring food security to producing useful materials from waste. Narayanan remarked that the July 30 launch of NISAR, a collaborative satellite by ISRO and NASA, was a "historic milestone". He said it was "Indian knowledge and Indian experts" who were behind the launch vehicle, a GSLV rocket. While the country began its space mission with launch rockets gifted by the US, today, India is progressing with equal partnership alongside developed nations, he added. The inaugural session was presided over by Dr C Anandharamakrishnan, Director, CSIR-NIIST. He highlighted the importance of making the country's materials and minerals imports to zero. Eminent scientists, including Dr Ramanuj Narayan (Director, CSIR-IMMT, Bhubaneswar), Dr Sandeep Ghosh Chaudhary (Director, CSIR-NML), Prof U Kamachi Mudali, and Dr Anupam Agnihotri, offered their felicitations and shared insights on the future of critical mineral resources and sustainable material technologies, the release said.
India Today
01-08-2025
- Science
- India Today
What will Nisar look for in space? Project scientist who designed it answers
What will Nisar be looking at in space? In simple terms: nearly everything that matters for Earth's survival, from the slow grind of tectonic plates to the vanishing breath of forests, from swelling seas to invisible carbon shifts in the Nasa-Isro Synthetic Aperture Radar (Nisar) satellite is a first-of-its-kind Earth observation mission that's ready to monitor climate change, carbon emissions, and natural disaster patterns with unprecedented $1.3 billion satellite was launched by Isro from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota on Thursday. In an exclusive interview, Paul Rosen, Project Scientist at Nasa, explained why Nisar is different — both in design and purpose — from anything humanity has launched before.'Nisar carries two powerful radars,' Rosen says, 'one built by Nasa and the other by Isro. This dual radar system allows us to scan vast swaths of the Earth every 12 days and build almost cinematic, three-dimensional time-lapse maps of changes happening to glaciers, forests, and coastlines.'What enables this high-resolution monitoring is Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) — a technology Rosen calls "almost magical." Instead of relying on visible light like a regular camera, SAR sends microwave pulses toward Earth and collects echoes. While each pulse has low resolution on its own, the satellite processes thousands of such echoes to synthetically create the effect of a massive antenna — giving it the ability to "see" Earth's surface in detail as fine as 5 to 10 meters. India's GSLV launches with Nisar mission. (Photo: Isro) And this radar doesn't blink. 'Unlike optical satellites,' Rosen explains, 'SAR works in all weather, day or night. It's ideal for imaging forest fires, floods, or earthquakes — even when clouds or smoke obscure the ground.'The mission also has sharp scientific priorities: monitoring ice sheets, sea ice, agricultural patterns, wetland flooding, and especially above-ground carbon variability. According to Rosen, 'One of our key goals is to help carbon modellers better understand how much carbon is stored and released by forests and crops. That's crucial for fighting climate change.'Another groundbreaking application is in tracking tectonic plate movements. Using a technique called radar interferometry, Nisar can detect ground shifts as small as a few millimeters, allowing scientists to monitor stress accumulation along fault lines. 'We'll be able to map the Earth's motion before and after earthquakes and improve models for future risk,' Rosen hardware behind this mission is just as ambitious. A massive, unfolding radar reflector mounted on a boom enables the wide-angle scans, and the satellite combines S-band (built by Isro) and L-band (from Nasa) radar frequencies — a world-first for free-flying space collaboration between Nasa and Isro, Rosen says, has been one of the mission's highlights. 'Isro brings unmatched experience in turning data into real-world applications. We learned a lot from them, and they from us. It's been deeply rewarding.'With subsystems already being activated, Nisar is expected to become fully operational within weeks. Once live, it will provide scientists and governments with real-time insights into Earth's evolving systems — from the fragile crust beneath us to the living carbon engines above.- EndsMust Watch
India Today
01-08-2025
- Science
- India Today
Denied, accused, vindicated: Nisar for the world, redemption for Nambi
In a historic collaboration, India and the United States have successfully launched the Nasa-Isro Synthetic Aperture Radar (Nisar) satellite. Valued at approximately $1.3 billion, Nisar is the costliest civilian Earth observation satellite ever developed and marks the most ambitious joint science mission undertaken by the two 2,392 kilograms, Nisar has been placed in a sun-synchronous orbit and will circle the Earth every 97 minutes. Equipped with advanced radar systems, it will scan the planet with high precision, day and night, in all weather FLIGHT OF REDEMPTIONWhat makes this launch even more remarkable is not just the satellite, but the rocket that carried it into space. Isro used its powerful Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle, GSLV-F16, to place Nisar into a sun-synchronous orbit. At the core of the GSLV is its cryogenic upper stage, a high-performance 100% indigenous engine that gives the rocket its final thrust into orbit. But this engine is more than a scientific is a symbol of India's resilience and the personal redemption of the man who once led its development: Nambi the very technology that was once denied to India was used to launch a satellite for the country that tried to block it. The United States, which once opposed India's efforts to acquire cryogenic engine technology, is today a customer of understand why this moment matters so deeply, one must go back to where the story began, three decades ago, when a scientist's dedication collided with geopolitics and nearly cost him NAMBI SAGABy the early 1990s, Isro was aiming to graduate from the PSLV to the GSLV system. For these more powerful rockets, Isro scientists explored three types of fuel systems. The first was earth-storable fuels, liquids that can be stored at normal temperatures, such as unsymmetrical dimethylhydrazine (UDMH) and nitrogen tetroxide. These were easier to handle but offered lower second option was semi-cryogenic engines, which use a mix of kerosene and liquid oxygen. They are more efficient but were still under development. The third, and most powerful, was cryogenic propulsion, which uses liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen stored at extremely low temperatures. GSLV-F16 launches with Nisar mission. (Photo:n Isro) Though technically complex, cryogenic engines offered the highest thrust and were ideal for the rocket's upper stage. Cryogenics was the clear choice, but also the hardest to engines use super-cooled liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen as fuel, stored at temperatures as low as –250C. They produce extremely high thrust, making them essential for launching heavy satellites into high orbits. But the very features that make cryogenic engines powerful also make them incredibly complex. Storing and handling such super-cooled liquids requires advanced materials. Even the slightest heat leak can cause the fuel to evaporate or create pressure a fully operational engine would take years, and India's satellite programme couldn't wait. With deadlines looming, Isro began exploring international options to procure the technology. At the time, only the United States, Japan, countries in the European Union, and Russia had developed a working cryogenic came in from the United States and the European Union, but both were very expensive and came without the transfer of came Russia's 1990, it proposed a far more favourable deal: two cryogenic engines along with full transfer of technology. For Isro, it was a breakthrough. The deal was signed, and a team of eight Indian scientists was sent to Moscow to begin training and joint BLOCKS INDIAFifteen months after the deal was signed, the United States objected, claiming that the agreement violated the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), and imposed sanctions. The West feared that India could repurpose cryogenic technology to develop long-range ballistic mounting international pressure, Glavkosmos withdrew from the deal in 1993. In its place came a heavily revised agreement that allowed the delivery of seven fully assembled cryogenic engines—but with no transfer of the same time, the government sanctioned a Rs 300 crore initiative to develop an indigenous cryogenic engine. The man appointed to lead this project was Nambi had joined Isro in 1966 as a technical assistant at the Thumba Equatorial Rocket Launching Station. In 1969, he was sent to Princeton University on a Government of India scholarship, where he specialised in chemical rocket propulsion. During the 1970s, when Isro relied solely on solid-fuel technology, Narayanan played a pivotal role in introducing liquid propulsion to led the development of the Vikas engine, which went on to become a crucial component in both PSLV and GSLV missions. Now leading the cryogenic engine programme, Narayanan saw it as a mission to make India self-reliant in space. But he had no idea that this mission—and his life—were about to be torn apart by a the cryogenic project picked up momentum, an unexpected storm hit. In late 1994, Nambi Narayanan and his colleague Sasi Kumaran were suddenly arrested on charges of espionage. They were accused of leaking confidential data to Pakistan through two Maldivian women, who Narayanan had never case stunned the nation. Narayanan was subjected to brutal interrogation. The cryogenic engine programme, already under strain, suffered a setback. Morale within Isro dropped, and one of its finest engineers was vilified without the case was transferred to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which found no evidence to support the charges. Narayanan was acquitted. Years later, on September 14, 2018, the Supreme Court acknowledged the grave injustice he had suffered. A Generative AI image of Nambi Narayanan celebrating the launch of Nisar. (Photo: India Today/Rahul Gupta) NEVER GIVING UPDespite the fallout, Isro did not give up, and neither did Nambi stop fighting the battle for early 2000s saw multiple GSLV test flights fail. Engines misfired. Rockets underperformed. Entire missions were lost. Western media often mocked India's ambitions, painting them as unrealistic and India persisted. The breakthrough came on January 5, 2014. Isro successfully launched the GSLV-D5 mission using a 100% indigenous cryogenic upper stage. It was more than a technological milestone; it was a declaration to the world. Today, that very engine—once denied, sabotaged, and born out of adversity—has placed the world's most advanced Earth observation satellite into Nambi Narayanan, this mission stands as a quiet redemption. The rocket that once slowed under the shadow of false accusations now carries international payloads into space. The man once labelled a traitor is now honoured as a pioneer of India's space self-reliance.(This is an authored article by Srijan Pal Singh. He is an author and an IIM Ahmedabad graduate, who was the Advisor for Policy and Technology to Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam, 11th President of India.)- EndsMust Watch
NDTV
01-08-2025
- Science
- NDTV
"Highly Satisfying Moment": ISRO Chief To NDTV On NISAR Satellite Launch
New Delhi: ISRO chairman Dr V Narayanan has expressed pride and relief after India's space agency, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), successfully launched the $1.3 billion NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) satellite aboard the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV F-16) rocket from Sriharikota on Wednesday. This mission marked a historic collaboration between two space-faring nations and showcases India's growing prowess in high-precision space technology. The GSLV rocket, once dubbed the 'naughty boy of ISRO', now behaved like an obedient teenager. The success also brought cheers across ISRO, which saw two expensive failures this year. GSLV-F16/NISAR From a majestic liftoff to the flawless separation, witness the full journey. Watch spectacular moments of NISAR launching aboard GSLV-F16 and its precise separation, captured on-board. A milestone in global space collaboration. #ISRO #NASA #GSLVF16 #NISAR — ISRO (@isro) July 30, 2025 "Each launch is very, very important for us. It's a new vehicle for us. To be frank, I was a little bit tense, but then I am relaxed now," Dr Narayanan told NDTV, reflecting on the tense moments leading up to lift off. A Mission Of Many Firsts The NISAR satellite is the most expensive civilian Earth imaging satellite ever built. It features a dual-frequency Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) payload-L-band built by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), and S-band developed by ISRO. The satellite also includes a 12-meter unfurlable umbrella-like antenna system, making it a technological marvel. "This was the 102nd launch from Sriharikota and the 18th GSLV rocket launch. But for the first time, we launched to a sun-synchronous polar orbit. All other vehicles have been used for geosynchronous transfer orbit missions," Dr Narayanan explained, highlighting the uniqueness of the mission. ISRO's role extended beyond payload development. "ISRO is responsible for building the entire spacecraft-the structure, power system, inertial system, propulsion system-everything," he added. A Symbol Of Indo-US Collaboration The NISAR mission was nudged forward during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to the United States, symbolizing the strength of Indo-US scientific collaboration. "What a proud moment when PM Modi announced that the satellite built by both countries would be lifted off and placed in orbit by our rocket," Dr. Narayanan recalled. The launch was executed with remarkable precision. "The performance of the rocket was very precise. It was a highly satisfying and exciting moment for the entire ISRO community," he said. Cryogenic Triumph The mission also spotlighted India's mastery of cryogenic engine technology, a capability once denied to India under the technology denial regimes of the US. Dr. Narayanan shared his personal journey: "When the program started, I was a junior engineer. After 20 years, when we succeeded, surely I had a role to play. But it is not an individual role. Almost 5,000 to 7,000 people contributed." He emphasised the collective effort behind the NISAR success: "NASA and ISRO together working on a satellite system, and an Indian launcher developed by Indian scientists, industrial partners, lifted that satellite and placed it perfectly in orbit. What a satisfying and proud moment for all Indians across the globe." Operational Timeline And Global Impact The satellite is currently healthy and operational. "The solar panel is deployed and generating the required power. We are now in the process of unfurling the antenna and checking payload performance. In about 2.5 to 3 months, we will declare the satellite operational," Dr. Narayanan confirmed. With a precise launch that saves on board satellite fuel, the NISAR satellite is now expected to serve for 6 to 7 years and will provide critical data for Earth observation, disaster management, agriculture, and climate studies. "The entire global community is going to benefit from this satellite," he said. NASA's Reaction and Future Missions NASA was thrilled with the launch. "They were extremely happy with the performance of the launcher. The satellite was injected correctly in its intended orbit," Dr. Narayanan noted. India's Space Journey: From Dependence to Leadership Reflecting on India's space journey, Dr. Narayanan said, "Fifty years back, we built our first satellite with support from other countries. Today, our own launcher is placing the costliest satellite in the world in orbit. Strength only respects strength." He credited ISRO's success to teamwork and a strong institutional culture. "ISRO's accomplishments are due to 20,000 employees of the Department of Space, our industrial partners, and academia. We believe the country and the organization are above individuals. Our review mechanisms and open work culture yield outstanding results." The successful launch of NISAR is not just a technological feat but a testament to India's emergence as a global space leader. It underscores the strength of international collaboration and the relentless pursuit of excellence by ISRO. As Dr. Narayanan aptly put it, "It is really a proud moment for all the Indians across the globe."
