Proud India in a space journey with ISRO

Happy Independence Day 2006 to all Indians. This is India's 59th Independence day...

Scott Carney of wired.com has written an article about his visit to the Indian Space Research Organisation and his reviews are wonderful and add to the already existing pride - of me being an INDIAN.

I have added some excerpts from the portal. Please take some time and read the full article and don't neglect.

"Indians pride themselves on their success in space.

Every launch resonates deeply in patriotic nerve centers and causes celebrations throughout the country. Some cities fire off so many fireworks the sky stays thick with smoke for hours. In other places, people pray for the success of the mission in temples and mosques. They may not know what's on board the rocket, but its liftoff certainly lends credibility to India.

After 11 consecutive successful launches, the most recent launch of India's Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle on July 10 had to be aborted when one of the engines failed. But these sorts of setbacks are par for the course in the space business -- and aren't confined to India. In 2003, a similar satellite launch by Brazil's space agency resulted in disaster when the rocket exploded on the launch pad, killing 21 technicians and briefly forcing the country to suspend its space program.

India is different. While the leaders of the free world imagine advanced weapons systems, scientists in India see space technology as a means to help the developing world."

Short facts:
a. India has successfully put 44 satellites into orbit.
b. ISRO operates on about one-twentieth of NASA's $16.5 billion annual budget.
c. "The two organizations (ISRO and NASA) have different research priorities," said the current chairman of ISRO, Madhavan Nair.
d. India stands shoulder to shoulder with programs in the United States - One satellite launched in 2001 performed so well it made analysts wonder if it would be used to spy on other nations.
e. D. Raghunandan, executive secretary of Delhi Science Forum says, "There may not be the impenetrable firewall that the U.S. wants, but there is pretty much a separation between the Defence Research & Development Organisation and ISRO."
f. "We can launch a remote-sensing satellite for half the price of anyone else," said Shridhara Murhi, executive director of Antrix, the commercial arm of ISRO.

ISRO programs:
a. Chandrayaan-1: an orbital space satellite designed to map the surface of the moon.
b. SCRAMJET: Hypersonic research program to develop a SCRAM jet engine.
c. Rocket science: Rocket Launches with PSLV (Polar Satellite Launching Vehicle) and GSLV (Geosynchronous Satellite Launching Vehicle) and a research on a new launch vehicle, the GSLV-III.
d. Miniature satellites: Building disposable multi-stage rockets
e. Remote sensing: search and rescue, detecting climatic shifts, uncovering archaeological ruins, managing fisheries and forests, and detecting water in the most barren areas of the planet.
f. Telemedicine: specialist doctors in the city are able to diagnose and treat illnesses in the remotest corners of the country from the comfort of their own hospitals.
g. Telecommunications: INSAT satellite program for transmitting television and media.

For full articles click the below links.

ISRO
India's Cut-Price Space Program
India Rolls Its Own Space Tech
India's Rocket Man Powers Up
Gallery: Inside the ISRO