S. K. Shivakumar (1953 – 13 April 2019) was an Indian scientist from

Karnataka Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...

state who worked at the

Indian Space Research Organisation The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO; ) is the national space agency of India, headquartered in Bengaluru. It operates under the Department of Space (DOS) which is directly overseen by the Prime Minister of India, while the Chairman ...

(ISRO) centres. He was awarded the

Padma Shri Padma Shri (IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest Indian honours system, civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, ...

, the fourth highest civilian award of India, in 2015.

Early life and education

Shivakumar was born in 1953 in

Mysore Mysore (), officially Mysuru (), is a city in the southern part of the state of Karnataka, India. Mysore city is geographically located between 12° 18′ 26″ north latitude and 76° 38′ 59″ east longitude. It is located at an altitude of ...

in Mysore State (now

), India. He earned a

BSc A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

from Mysore University followed by a BE in Electrical Communications Engineering and an MTech in Physical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore. He received PhD in Electronics from

Kuvempu University Kuvempu University is a public state university in Shankaraghattta, Bhadravathi taluk, Shivamogga, Karnataka, India. It was established in 1987 by the act of the Karnataka state legislature through amendment No. 28/1976 dated 29 January 1989 ...

in 2014.

Career

He joined the

(ISRO) and started his career at its

ISRO Telemetry, Tracking and Command Network The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), over the years, has established a comprehensive global network of ground stations to provide Telemetry, Tracking and Command (TTC) support to satellite and launch vehicle missions. These facilities ar ...

(ISTRAC),

Sriharikota Sriharikota is a Barrier island off the Bay of Bengal coast located in the Shar Project settlement of Tirupati district in Andhra Pradesh, India. It houses the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, one of the two satellite launch centres in India (the o ...

in 1976. He later worked in its Indian Space Research Organisation Satellite Centre (ISAC) from 1978 to 1998. He was the project director for the development of the dish antenna of the

Indian Deep Space Network Indian Deep Space Network (IDSN) is a network of large antennas and communication facilities operated by the Indian Space Research Organisation to support the interplanetary spacecraft missions of India. Its hub is located at Byalalu, Ramanaga ...

which is used for

telemetry Telemetry is the in situ data collection, collection of measurements or other data at remote points and their automatic data transmission, transmission to receiving equipment (telecommunication) for monitoring. The word is derived from the Gr ...

for the missions such as the Chandrayaan-1, India's first

lunar exploration The physical exploration of the Moon began when ''Luna 2'', a space probe launched by the Soviet Union, made an impact on the surface of the Moon on September 14, 1959. Prior to that the only available means of exploration had been observation ...

mission and Mangalyaan, India's first interplanetary mission. He was involved in several satellite missions such as Bhaskara,

Indian National Satellite System 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 is ...

(INSAT),

Ariane Passenger Payload Experiment Ariane may refer to: *Ariana (name), also Ariane, Arianne Arts * ''Ariane'' (Martinů), an opera by Bohuslav Martinů, first performed 1961 * ''Ariane'' (Massenet), an opera by Jules Massenet, first performed 1906 * ''Ariane'' (film), a 1931 ...

(APPLE) and Indian Remote Sensing Programme (IRS). Shivakumar was the mission director of the IRS-1B and

IRS-1C IRS-1C was the fifth remote sensing Indian satellite built, and designed by Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO). IRS-1C is first second-generation operational Remote Sensing Satellite. The satellite carries payloads with enhanced capabili ...

satellite missions. He also served as the director of the ISTRAC between September 1998 and November 2010. Shivakumar was later the associate director of the ISAC from November 2010 to June 2012 and director of the program from July 2012 to March 2015. As of 2019, he was serving as chairman of Karnataka Science and Technology Council.

Death

He died on 13 April 2019 at the age of 66 in

Bangalore Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...

and was cremated at the Banashankari Crematorium. The cause of death was reported to be post-hepatic jaundice.

Awards

, the fourth highest civilian award of India, in 2015 *

Karnataka Rajyotsava ''Kannada Rajyotsava'', also known as Karnataka Formation Day or Karnataka Day, is a state public holiday and celebrated on 1 November of every year. This was the day in 1956 when all the Kannada language-speaking regions of south western Indi ...

Award (2008) *Nadoja Award (2013) *Honorary Doctorate (DSc) by the Mysore University

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shivakumar, S. K. 1953 births 2019 deaths Kannada people Scientists from Mysore Indian Space Research Organisation people Indian lunar exploration programme Indian Institute of Science alumni Recipients of the Padma Shri in science & engineering 20th-century Indian engineers Engineers from Karnataka Recipients of the Rajyotsava Award 2008