Vikram Sarabhai Image

Vikram Sarabhai was born on 12 August 1919 in Ahmedabad, into a wealthy industrialist family. While studying at Cambridge, he had to return to India due to World War II. He then worked with Dr. C.V. Raman on cosmic rays at the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore. Known as the father of the Indian Space Program, Dr. Sarabhai was a visionary who built or supported many important institutions. These include the Physical Research Laboratory (PRL) in Ahmedabad, the Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad (IIMA), and Darpan Academy for Performing Arts.

Dr. Sarabhai was instrumental in convincing the government of the need for a space program, leading to the establishment of the Indian National Committee for Space Research in 1962, which later became the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO). He also set up India’s first rocket launching station at Thumba, which eventually became the Vikram Sarabhai Space Research Center. He believed in using satellites for education, weather forecasting, and communication. Dr. Sarabhai mentored many renowned scientists, including Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, E.V. Chitnis, U.R. Rao, and K. Kasturirangan.

Trivia : A crater on the moon was named after Dr. Vikram Sarabhai by the International Astronomical Union in 1974.

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