List of ISRO Chairman 2023: Name, Tenure and Other Important Facts

List of ISRO Chairmen: Under the leadership of Chairman S Somnath, ISRO is on the verge of another groundbreaking achievement with the Aditya L-1 mission. S Somanath (incumbent) was appointed as the tenth Chairman of ISRO by the Appointments Committee of Cabinet (ACC) on January 12, 2022. He succeeded K. Sivan who assumed the office in January 2018. The first Chairman of ISRO was Dr. Vikram Sarabhai.

The head of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), also known as the ISRO Chairman, holds a statutory position within the space organisation. He/she is both a secretary to the Government of India and the head of the Department of Space (DOS) under the direct supervision of the Prime Minister of India. Since 1963, 10 men have been appointed as ISRO Chairman.

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Here is the complete list of Indian Space Research Organisation Chairmen.

  • The current chairman of the Indian Space Research Organization is Somanath, who is also one of the planners of India’s lunar program and is in charge of the Chandrayaan-3 mission.
  • Dr. Shailesh Nayak, who previously worked in oceanography and remote sensing, was the interim head of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) for 11 days.
  • Under the leadership of S. Somanath, ISRO launched Chandrayaan-3, which would become India’s first spacecraft to land on the Moon and the world’s first spacecraft to land on the South Pole of the lunar surface.
  • ISRO Chairmanship List: Key Facts

    1. Dr. Vikram Sarabhai (1963-1972) is considered the father of the Indian space program. Vikram Sarabhai established the following institutions: I. Physical Research Laboratory (PRL), Ahmedabad. II. Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Ahmedabad. III. Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, Trivandrum. IV. Faster Breeder Test Reactor (FBTR), Kalpakkam

    2. Prof. MGK Menon (Jan-Sep 1972) I. He is known for his work in cosmic ray and particle physics, especially in high energy interactions of elementary particles.

    3. Prof. Satish Dhawan (1972-1984) I. He succeeded Vikram Sarabhai, the founder of the Indian space program, as Chairman of the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) in 1972. II. His efforts led to the operation of Indian operational spacecraft such as INSAT and PSLV.

    4. Prof. Udupi Ramachandra Rao (1984-1994)I. Dr. Rao took the responsibility for the creation of Indian satellite technology in 1972. II. He designed the first Indian satellite “Aryabhata” in 1975.

    5. Dr. Krishnaswamy Kasturirangam (1994-2003) I. Under his leadership, as Chairman of ISRO, the space programme witnessed several major milestones like PSLV and GSLV.II. He was also the Project Director of India’s first two experimental earth observation satellites, BHASKARA-I and II.

    6. Shri G.Madhavan Nair (2003-2009)I. Chandrayaan-1 was India’s first lunar probe. It was launched under the chairmanship of Shri G.Madhavan Nair.II. During his six years as Chairman and Secretary of ISRO, ISRO successfully completed 25 missions.

    7. Dr. K. Radhakrishnan (2009-2014) I. India’s first interplanetary mission “Mangalyaan” was launched under the chairmanship of Mr. K. Radhakrishnan.

    8. Shri AS Kiran Kumar (2015 to 2018)I. He did an admirable job in the launch of Chandrayaan-1 and Mars Orbiter Mission of India.II. Indian National Regional Navigation System (IRNSS) and GAGAN were developed under his supervision.

    9. Dr. K. Sivan (2018-2022) I. He has made significant contributions to end-to-end mission planning, design, integration and analysis. II. His tenure was instrumental in the launch of Chandrayaan-2 and the acceleration of India’s human space programme.

    III. Unfortunately, the much-anticipated Chandrayaan-2 lost communications and eventually crashed just hours before its lunar landing.

    10. S Somanath (appointed in January 2022)

    On January 12, 2022, the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) appointed I. S Somanath as the tenth head of the Indian Space Research Organization.

    II. Under his leadership, the Indian Space Research Organization launched Chandrayaan-3, which landed on the moon on August 23, 2023. Now, India is the fourth country in the world to land on the lunar surface.

    In conclusion, it can be said that ISRO has done very commendable work in the field of space and astronomy. The contribution of all the past chairmen of ISRO is very admirable, especially Dr. Vikram Sarabhai.

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