Udupi Ramachandra Rao facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Udupi Ramachandra Rao
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Rao circa 2008
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| Born | 10 March 1932 Adamaru, South Canara district, Madras Presidency, British India
(present-day Adamaru, Udupi district, Karnataka, India) |
| Died | 24 July 2017 (aged 85) |
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| Known for | Indian Space Program |
| Spouse(s) | Yashoda Rao |
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| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Space science and Satellite Technology |
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| Doctoral advisor | Vikram Sarabhai |
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Udupi Ramachandra Rao
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| Chairman, Indian Space Research Organisation | |
| In office 1984–1994 |
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| Preceded by | Satish Dhawan |
| Succeeded by | Krishnaswamy Kasturirangan |
Udupi Ramachandra Rao (born March 10, 1932 – died July 24, 2017) was a famous Indian space scientist. He led the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) as its chairman. He was also in charge of the Physical Research Laboratory in Ahmedabad and the Nehru Planetarium in Bengaluru. People often called him "The Satellite Man of India" because he played a huge role in India launching its first satellite, Aryabhata, in 1975.
Rao received two of India's highest civilian awards: the Padma Bhushan in 1976 and the Padma Vibhushan in 2017. He was the first Indian person to be added to the Satellite Hall of Fame in Washington in 2013. He was also the first Indian to be inducted into the International Astronautics Federation (IAF) Hall of Fame in 2016.
Contents
Early Life and Education
U. R. Rao was born in a family in Adamaru, a town in the state of Karnataka, India. His parents were Lakshminarayana Acharya and Krishnaveni Amma. He went to school in Adamaru and Udupi for his early education.
He studied science at different universities:
- He earned his Bachelor of Science (B.Sc.) degree from Madras University in 1952.
- He got his Master of Science (M.Sc.) degree from Banaras Hindu University in 1954.
- He completed his Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degree at the Physical Research Laboratory in Ahmedabad in 1960. His guide for this research was the famous scientist Vikram Sarabhai.
After his studies in India, Rao worked in the United States. He was a researcher at the MIT and a professor at the University of Texas at Dallas. There, he worked on important space missions like the Pioneer and Explorer spacecraft. He returned to India in 1966 to become a professor at the Physical Research Laboratory in Ahmedabad.
Career in Space Science
Dr. Rao began his career studying cosmic rays, which are tiny, high-energy particles from space. He worked with Dr. Vikram Sarabhai, who is known as the father of India's space program. Rao was one of the first scientists to show that the solar wind (a stream of particles from the Sun) is always flowing and how it affects Earth's magnetic field. His experiments on various Pioneer and Explorer spacecraft helped scientists understand cosmic rays from the Sun and the space between planets.
Realizing how important space technology could be for India's growth, Dr. Rao took on the big job of setting up satellite technology in India in 1972. Under his leadership, India launched its first satellite, "Aryabhata," in 1975. After that, more than 18 satellites were designed, built, and launched. These included satellites like Bhaskara, APPLE, Rohini, and the INSAT and IRS series. These satellites helped with communication, weather forecasting, and observing Earth from space.
Leading ISRO
In 1985, Dr. Rao became the Chairman of the Space Commission and Secretary of the Department of Space. During his time as chairman, he greatly sped up the development of rocket technology in India. This led to the successful launch of the ASLV rocket in 1992. He was also key in developing the PSLV rocket, which successfully launched an 850 kg satellite into orbit in 1995.
Dr. Rao also started the work on the GSLV rocket and cryogenic engine technology in 1991. He was responsible for the successful launch of many INSAT satellites. These satellites were very important for improving communication across India in the 1980s and 1990s. Thanks to INSAT, people in remote parts of India could easily make phone calls using STD (Subscriber Trunk Dialing). This development was a big step that helped India become a major hub for Information Technology later on. He was also the first chairman of Antrix Corporation, which is the commercial branch of ISRO.
Important Roles and Awards
Dr. Rao held many important positions and received numerous awards throughout his life. He was a member of many science academies in India and around the world. He also served as the Vice President of the International Astronautical Federation (IAF) from 1984 to 1992.
He was chosen as the Chairman of the United Nations - Committee On Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UN-COPUOS) in 1997. He also led the UNISPACE-III Conference, which focused on the peaceful uses of outer space.
Some of his key awards include:
- Padma Bhushan (1976) and Padma Vibhushan (2017) from the Government of India.
- Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Award (1975) for his work in space science.
- Yuri Gagarin Medal (1991) from the USSR.
- Allan D Emil Award (1992) for international cooperation.
- Frank J Malina Award (1994) from the International Astronautical Federation.
- Theodore Von Karman Award (2005), the highest award from the International Academy of Astronautics.
- Induction into the Satellite Hall of Fame (2013) and the International Astronautical Federation Hall of Fame (2016).
He also received many honorary doctorate degrees (D.Sc. and D.Litt.) from universities in India and Italy, recognizing his great contributions to science.
Legacy
On March 10, 2021, which would have been his 89th birthday, Google Doodle honored Dr. U. R. Rao with a special drawing on their homepage. This showed how important his work was to the world.
Books authored
- U. R. Rao, K. Kasturirangan, K. R. Sridhara Murthi. and Surendra Pal (Editors), "Perspectives in Communications", World Scientific (1987). ISBN: 978-9971-978-76-1
- U. R. Rao, "Space and Agenda 21 - Caring for Planet Earth", Prism Books Pvt. Ltd., Bangalore (1995).
- U. R. Rao, "Space Technology for Sustainable Development", Tata McGraw-Hill Pub., New Delhi (1996)
