People behind India’s historic moon mission, Chandrayaan-3

Over 1000 engineers and scientists have worked to get the nearly Rs 700 crore mission up and running

With India all set to achieve a significant milestone in space exploration with the Chandrayaan-3 ready for a soft landing on the moon within just a few hours, let’s take a look at the people behind India’s historic moon mission, the Chandrayaan-3.
The Chandrayaan-3, carrying the hopes of millions of people around the world and scientists, has been in the making for four years.
Over 1000 engineers and scientists have worked to get the nearly Rs 700 crore mission up and running.

S Somanath, Chairman, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)

S Somanath, an aerospace engineer, also the chairman of ISRO helped in the designing of the of the rocket the Launch Vehicle Mark-3 or the Bahuballi rocket that lifted Chandrayaan-3 into orbit.
An alumnus from the prestigious Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, and as the head of the Indian space agency, his responsibility was also to make sure the Chandrayaan-3 satellite was fully tested before it was rocketed up.

Unnikrishnan Nair S, Director, Vikram Sarabhai Space Center, Thiruvananthapuram

Unnikrishnan Nair S, an aerospace engineer, is heading India’s key facility for research on rocketry.
An alumnus of the prestigious Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, he was the first director of the Human Space Flight Center and many critical missions for Gaganyaan program have been led by him.
The Launch Vehicle Mark 3 has had a 100 per cent success record under his leadership. He also writes short stories.

Veeramuthuvel P, Project Director, Chandrayaan-3 mission, UR Rao Satellite Center, Bengaluru

Veeramuthuvel, project director for the Chandrayaan-3 mission, was involved with the Chandrayaan -2 and Mangalyaan missions. He has a Masters of Technology degree from Chennai.

Kalpana K, Deputy Project Director, Chandrayaan-3 mission, UR Rao Satellite Center, Bengaluru

Kalpana K, an engineer who has dedicated her life to making India’s satellites, she was involved both in the Chandrayaan-2 and Mangalyaan missions.

M Vanitha, Deputy Director, UR Rao Satellite Center, Bengaluru

M Vanitha, an electronics systems engineer, worked as the project director for the Chandrayaan-2 mission. She became the first woman in India to lead a lunar mission.
Her knowledge of Chandrayaan-2 has been ably used by the team that fabricated Chandrayaan-3. She loves gardening.

M Sankaran , Director, UR Rao Satellite Center, Bengaluru

With an expertise in making novel power systems and solar arrays that go on to power satellites, M Sankaran is regarded as the ISRO’s powerhouse.
His signature may be found on the Chandrayaan-1, Mangalyaan, and Chandrayaan-2 satellites, which were made by someone with more than three decades of experience in the field.
It was his job to make sure the Chandrayaan-3 satellite was adequately hot and cold-tested and he helped create a lunar surface replica to test the strength of the lander. He is a physics master’s degree holder.

V Narayanan, Director, Liquid Propulsion Systems Center, Thiruvananthapuram

V Narayanan, a specialist on liquid propulsion engines, the Vikram lander will attempt the soft landing on the thrusters developed under his leadership.
He is an IIT Kharagpur graduate and an expert in cryogenic engines. The majority of ISRO rockets, including the Launch Vehicle Mark 3 that launched Chandrayaan-3, have his personal stamp

BN Ramakrishna, Director, ISRO Telemetry Tracking and Command Network (ISTRAC), Bengaluru

BN Ramakrishna, is the person behind the sending commands to Vikram lander. He is the reason; the Chandrayaan-3 satellite is literally dancing around the moon.
India’s largest dish antenna, a humongous 32-meter diameter dish situated outside Bengaluru, is being used to send commands to the Vikram lander.

Also Read: ‘Chandrayaan 3, India’s Moon mission: landing time, its overall cost and more

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