The Department of Space is an

Indian government The Government of India (ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, ...

department responsible for administration of the Indian space program. It manages several agencies and institutes related to space exploration and

space technologies Space technology is technology for use in outer space, in travel (''astronautics'') or other activities beyond Earth's atmosphere, for purposes such as spaceflight, space exploration, and Earth observing satellite, Earth observation. Space technolo ...

. The Indian space program under the DoS aims to promote the development and application of space science and technology for the socio-economic benefit of the country. It includes two major satellite systems,

INSAT The Indian National Satellite System or INSAT, is a series of multipurpose geostationary satellites launched by ISRO to satisfy the telecommunications, broadcasting, meteorology, and search and rescue operations. Commissioned in 1983, INSAT i ...

for communication, television broadcasting and meteorological services, and

Indian Remote Sensing Satellite India's remote sensing program was developed with the idea of applying space technologies for the benefit of humankind and the development of the country. The program involved the development of three principal capabilities. The first was to desi ...

s (IRS) system for resources monitoring and management. It has also developed two satellite launch vehicles

Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle The Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) is an expendable medium-lift launch vehicle designed and operated by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). It was developed to allow India to launch its Indian Remote Sensing (IRS) satellites ...

(PSLV) and Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) to place IRS and INSAT class satellites in orbit.

History

In 1961, the

Government of India The Government of India (ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, ...

and then

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...

Jawaharlal Nehru Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru (; ; ; 14 November 1889 – 27 May 1964) was an Indian anti-colonial nationalist, secular humanist, social democrat— * * * * and author who was a central figure in India during the middle of the 20t ...

entrusted the responsibility for space research and for the peaceful use of outer space to the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE), then under the leadership of Dr. Homi J. Bhabha. In 1962, the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) set up

Indian National Committee for Space Research The Indian National Committee for Space Research (INCOSPAR) was set up by Dr. Vikram Sarabhai in 1962 to formulate the Indian Space Programme. At the time, the committee was part of the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research. The committee too ...

(INCOSPAR), with Dr.

Vikram Sarabhai Vikram Ambalal Sarabhai (12 August 1919 – 30 December 1971) was an Indian physicist and astronomer who initiated space research and helped develop nuclear power in India. He was honoured with Padma Bhushan in 1966 and the Padma Vibhushan ...

as chairman, to organise a national space programme. In 1969, INCOSPAR was reconstituted as an advisory body under the India National Science Academy (INSA) and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) was established. The Government of India constituted the Space Commission and established the Department of Space (DoS) in 1972 and brought ISRO under DoS management on 1 June 1972. On 15 January S. Somanath succeeded Kailasavadivoo Sivan as the

Secretary A secretary, administrative professional, administrative assistant, executive assistant, administrative officer, administrative support specialist, clerk, military assistant, management assistant, office secretary, or personal assistant is a ...

(Space) and ''ex-officio'' chairman of Indian Space Research Organisation and Space Commission. Vanditha Sharma is the additional secretary of the department.

Agencies and institutes

Department_of_Space_(India)_-_organization_chart

The Department of Space manages the following agencies and institutes: * Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) – The primary research and development arm of the DoS. **

Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre The Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) is a major space research centre of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), focusing on rocket and space vehicles for India's satellite programme. It is located in Thiruvananthapuram, in the India ...

(VSSC),

Thiruvananthapuram Thiruvananthapuram (; ), also known by its former name Trivandrum (), is the capital of the Indian state of Kerala. It is the most populous city in Kerala with a population of 957,730 as of 2011. The encompassing urban agglomeration populati ...

. **

Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre The Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre (LPSC) is a research and development centre functioning under Indian Space Research Organisation. It has two units located at Valiamala, in Thiruvananthapuram of Kerala, and Bengaluru of Karnataka. LPSC i ...

(LPSC), Thiruvananthapuram. **

Satish Dhawan Space Centre Satish Dhawan Space Centre - SDSC (formerly Sriharikota Range - SHAR) is a rocket launch centre ( spaceport) operated by Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). It is located in Sriharikota, Tirupati district of Andhra Pradesh. Sriharikota ...

(SDSC-SHAR), Sriharikota. **

ISRO Satellite Centre The U R Rao Satellite Centre (URSC), formerly ISRO Satellite Centre (ISAC) ( hi, इसरो उपग्रह केंद्र) is an Indian Space Research Organisation centre for the design, development, and construction of Indian satel ...

(ISAC), Bengaluru. ** Space Applications Centre (SAC), Ahmedabad. ** National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC),

Hyderabad Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India ...

. **

ISRO Inertial Systems Unit The ISRO Inertial Systems Unit (IISU) is a research and development unit of the Indian Space Research Organisation located in Vattiyoorkavu, Thiruvananthapuram that specialises in inertial sensors and systems in satellite technology. Its specia ...

(IISU), Thiruvananthapuram. ** Development and Educational Communication Unit (DECU), Ahmedabad. **

Master Control Facility The Master Control Facility (MCF) is a facility set up by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) in the city of Hassan in the Indian state of Karnataka. Established in 1982, this facility is responsible for monitoring and controlling ge ...

(MCF),

Hassan Hassan, Hasan, Hassane, Haasana, Hassaan, Asan, Hassun, Hasun, Hassen, Hasson or Hasani may refer to: People *Hassan (given name), Arabic given name and a list of people with that given name *Hassan (surname), Arabic, Jewish, Irish, and Scottis ...

. ** ISRO Telemetry, Tracking and Command Network (ISTRAC), Bengaluru. **

Laboratory for Electro-Optics Systems Laboratory for Electro-Optics Systems is a research lab belonging to Indian Space Research Organisation. It involves in design and development of optics and sensor modules that can be deployed either onboard satellite or with the launch vehicle. ...

(LEOS), Bengaluru. ** Indian Institute of Remote Sensing (IIRS), Dehradun. *

Antrix Corporation Antrix Corporation Limited ( ISO 15919: ) is an Indian government-owned company under the administrative control of the Department of Space. It was incorporated in September 1992, as a commercial and marketing arm of ISRO by prompting, comme ...

– The marketing arm of ISRO. *

Physical Research Laboratory The Physical Research Laboratory (PRL) is a National Research Institute for space and allied sciences, supported mainly by Department of Space, Government of India. This research laboratory has ongoing research programmes in astronomy and astrop ...

(PRL), Ahmedabad. *

National Atmospheric Research Laboratory The National Atmospheric Research Laboratory(NARL) is an autonomous Research Institute funded by the Department of Space of the Government of India. NARL is engaged in fundamental and applied research in the field of Atmospheric Sciences. The re ...

(NARL), Gadanki. *

North-Eastern Space Applications Centre North-Eastern Space Applications Centre is a regional space centre established in September, 2000 by joint initiative of Department of space, Government of India and North Eastern Council to expedite the usage of remote sensing technology to di ...

(NE-SAC), Umiam. *

Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology (IIST) is a government-aided institute and deemed university for the study and research of space science, located at Valiamala, Nedumangad, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala. It is the first universit ...

(IIST), Thiruvananthapuram – India's space university. *

NewSpace India Limited NewSpace India Limited (NSIL) is a Public Sector Undertaking (PSU) of Government of India and commercial arm of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). It was established on 6 March 2019 under the administrative control of Department of Spa ...

(NSIL), Bengaluru. *

Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre Indian National Space Promotion and Authorization Centre (IN–SPACe) is a single-window autonomous agency under the Department of Space of the Government of India. Space programme in India has been developed over a period of more than five dec ...

(IN–SPACe)

References

External links

* {{Authority control Ministry of Science and Technology (India) Space programme of India 1972 establishments in Delhi Government agencies established in 1972

History

Agencies and institutes

See also

References

External links