By Maitphang Syiem
The space journey for Indian scientists and engineers was not a cakewalk. There were many unimaginable hurdles back then when it took off, however, there is something that Indians believe in. It’s called, “Lage Raho.” They stayed tuned and persisted with consistency and perseverance and that made Indians leapfrog, surpassing many hurdles to becoming a leading nation in space technology.
“That’s one small step for man and one giant leap for mankind,” as stated by Neil Armstrong when he first stepped on the lunar surface on July 20, 1969 and becoming the first man to have landed on the moon is epic. It will always stay in the minds of many of us. Ever since, the age for space exploration has progressed by leaps and bounds. The US and the Soviets were the two nations that were in the race for space and they are even more aggressive now. Their space programmes have become role models and inspirations for other developing nations in the quest for space technology. Our own Indian space programme had a humble beginning, starting off with (INCOSPAR) Indian National Committee for Space Research which was set up by the versatile industrialist, scientist, educator and a visionary late Dr. Vikram Sarabhai and later superseded what is known today as Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on August 15, 1969.
The space journey for Indian scientists and engineers was not a cakewalk. There were many unimaginable hurdles back then when it took off, however, there is something that Indians believe in. It’s called, “Lage Raho.” They stayed tuned and persisted with consistency and perseverance and that made Indians leapfrog, surpassing many hurdles to becoming a leading nation in space technology. Back in the early 1960’s and in the years that followed during the erstwhile ISRO (INCOSPAR) as it appears the major focus was on developing sounding rockets and launching pads for rockets it is fascinating to know that many best Indian brains were involved in the programme and many of them graduates from various prestigious Indian and American Institutes back then. The experiments with the sounding rockets from time to time laid the foundation for the development of satellite launch vehicles such as SLV, ASLV and furthermore to this day we have PSLV and GSLV which are capable of putting a satellite payload into the polar orbit and geo-stationary orbit of the Earth.
The Father of Indian Space Research the late Dr Vikram Sarabhai had a different approach towards using space technology. All his ideas were aimed at national development in terms of space technology for the benefit of many Indians. One such project was SITE in 1966 (Satellite Instructional Television Experiment) for educational progammes using NASA’s Satellite ATS-6. This project was a successful stint between NASA and ISRO, which later culminated into development of communication and broadcasting satellites (INSAT) Indian National Satellite System.
The Indian space programme in the later years after attaining the expertise of developing Launch Vehicles went on to the development of Satellite payload which are capable of transmitting information from space and back to earth. This was a shift from rockets to satellites.
The genesis of satellite payloads development started in 1969 at Space Science and Technology Center which was a division under Vikram Sarabhai Space Center, Thiruvananthapuram .The responsibility for this monumental work was given to a well- known personality, space scientist Prof. U. R. Rao. He took charge and carried forward the vision laid by Dr. Vikram Sarabhai. The Space Science and Technology Center then transitioned into the Satellite Systems Division in 1971. In the initial years the center became the hub for various satellite development projects. However, in 1971 the sudden demise of the ISRO founder Dr Sarabhai at the age of 53 was a huge setback for the Indian Space programme. However, the work continued under the new chairman of ISRO Prof. MGK Menon back then and thereafter by Prof. Satish Dhawan. The Satellite Systems Division was shifted to an industrial area in Peenya, Karnataka and it was there that the birth of the first Indian artificial satellite Aryabhatta named after the great Indian mathematician and astronomer took place in 1971 and off the record there were many suggested names for the satellite such as Mitra, Jawahar et al but Aryabhatta was adopted and was named by the first lady Prime Minister of India, late Indira Gandhi.
Those years noticed cordial relations between many space faring nations and for that matter, much credit goes to the kind of diplomacy and diplomatic ties that India had made during those initial stages of development. The US, the French, the Soviets, Japanese and many others had supported India in her quest for space technology. It was very clear that the Indian political and scientific leadership really wanted to develop space technology for the benefit of Indians and that garnered support from many nations. Till date India continues to leap-frog in her quest for space technology. In particular Aryabhatta was a joint venture project between India and the Soviet Union back then. The Soviets offered to launch Aryabhatta for India from their launch base Kasputin yar and the project was called ISSP or Indo Soviet Satellite Project.
The responsibility for this monumental work was given to Prof. U.R Rao. He signed the agreement with the USSR in 1972 for the ISSP project and nurtured the project to become the first landmark for the Indians to have their first artificial Indian satellite. Prof U.R Rao’s incredible approach to start with small satellites in experimental mode was a success as that led to the understanding and building of the knowhow for building bigger and more sophisticated artificial satellites. Prof U.R. Rao had the best men in his team and had successfully assembled and built the spacecraft in India. Aryabhatta was an experimental satellite weighing about 360 Kg with scientific instruments to measure the cosmic rays and neutrons from the sun. The estimated cost of building Aryabhatta was Rs 3 crores back then and Prof U.R Rao and his team built it in just 31 months.
Today April 19 is remembered as the day when the first Indian artificial satellite Aryabhatta was put into orbit in 1975 and was launched from Kasputin yar in Russia using Kosmos 3M rocket and. Forty seven years have passed since the successful launch of Arybhatta which heralded India to the space age at par with other space faring nations. As someone narrated, India entered into the space age at a time when there were more bullock carts than cars; there were more open sheds than buildings but despite the hurdles, the Indian space scientists made it and this has boosted the capability to build more satellites for national development. This feat was not a “Jugaad” but it was fully scientific and calculated.
Ever since Aryabhatta, ISRO has launched many operational communication satellites, Earth Observation Satellites, Meteorological Satellites. As stated earlier the entire process for the Indians was not a cakewalk but they “leapfrogged” and the spirit of “Lage Raho” continues till date. We can see that they have been successful in many attempts and India is today a leading nation in space technology.
To conclude, let us ponder upon the quotes of Dr. Vikram Sarabhai “There are some who question the relevance of space activities in a developing nation. To us, there is no ambiguity of purpose. We do not have the fantasy of competing with the economically advanced nations in the exploration of the moon or the planets or manned space-flights. But we are convinced that if we are to play a meaningful role nationally, and in the community of nations, we must be second to none in the application of advanced technologies to the real problems of man and society.”
(The writer is a Geospatial Technology Expert and can be reached at [email protected])