Team ISRO: Making India proud, again

The Indian Space Research Organisationscripted history when its Rs 450-crore Mars Orbiter Mission took off from Sriharikota spaceport for a 780 million-kilometre journey to the Red Planet on November 5

Over 1,000-odd scientists, led by their chief K Radhakrishnan, worked tirelessly for years to turn the ambitious mission into a reality.

The 10-month journey, which began on November 5, is expected to reach the Martian atmosphere in the third week of September 2014. The spacecraft will cover 400 million kilometres in 300 days before reaching the Martian atmosphere.

Incidentally, fewer than 25 of the spacecraft sent by other countries have been able to complete the entire journey to Mars.

Let’s doff our hats to the amazing members of Team ISRO who helped India achieve yet another milestone in the great beyond.

Some of the key members of team ISRO are:

K Radhakrishnan: ISRO chairman, secretary in Department of Space

M Annadurai: Programme director, Mars Orbiter Mission

S Ramakrishnan: Director of Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre and Member Launch Authorisation Board.

SK Shivakumar: Director of ISRO Satellite Centre

P Kunhikrishnan: Project director, PSLV programme

Chandradathan: Director, Liquid Propulsion system

AS Kiran Kumar: Director, Satellite Application Centre

MYS Prasad: Director, Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Chairman, Launch Authorisation Board

S Arunan: Project director, Mars Orbiter Mission

B Jayakumar: Associate project director, PSLV project

MS Pannirselvam: Chief general manager, Range operation director at Sriharikota Rocket port