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Exploring the extra-terrestrial

Guntur revels in an exhilarating experience of discovering space through replicas of indigenous satellites and rockets, says Ramesh Susarla

TIME TO THINK School children watch in awe the images displayed at the expo.

Telecommunication to television broadcasting, prediction of cyclones to finding mineral wealth in the oceans, every aspect of modern life is closely linked to the success of the 42-year-old Indian space research programme. Glimpses of its colourful journey are jointly provided by the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre and Indian Space Research Organisation at Hindu College in Guntur.

The unique expo that unfolded here provides a rare peek into the country's space odyssey and quenches the thirst of those eager to explore the unknown in the celestial objects.

The exclusivity of the event stems from the fact that the expo moves out of Kerala, with tons of its precious models and original material used in rockets encased in glass, once every month.

First rocket

The Indian space research programme began at a remote church in Thiruvananthapuram where the assembly for the first rocket of the country, called sounding rocket Rohini RH75, was carried out. The exhibition greets you with a model of the rocket that was taken to the launch pad at Thumba on an ordinary bicycle.

President APJ Abdul Kalam was part of the design team. Thumba is the imaginary magnetic equator that provides best conditions for launch of a rocket over the sea.

The first rocket put an American-made payload into the orbit on November 23, 1963, according to T.V. Manoranjan Rao, retired group director, Computer and Information, VSSC.

Reading books or browsing the Internet may not give the basic idea of what a rocket looks like but a view of the number of panels and models provides an insight into the entire gamut of activity.

In addition to fundamental aspects of the space, there are exhibits on various stages of development of rocket hardware and satellites.

The expo provides a clear picture of the saga of rockets made in St. Mary's Church to the latest rocketry in air-conditioned movable service tower (a mobile workshop).

While technological metamorphosis in launchers is exhibited in detail, the varied applications of rockets keep a visitor glued to the exhibits. The INSAT series has revolutionized the communication in the country through TV broadcasting, telephony, radio and weather monitoring. Remote sensing is another advantage the INSAT bestowed on the areas of agriculture, mineral prospecting and flood management.

All about Aryabhata

Today India has gained mastery over it and supplies satellite imagery even to the United States. Satellite imagery of the Krishna delta doubles up the visitor's enthusiasm to know more about the space programme.

On display is the 1:20 scale model of GSLVM-3 -- the launch vehicle having indigenously manufactured cryogenic engine and is the tallest model in the hall.

Don't you forget to carry a pen and a notebook if you are eager to know all about Aryabhata - the first satellite to be designed and developed in the country and Ariane Passenger Payload Experiment (APPLE).

The exhibition gets qualitatively enhanced thanks to the numerous documentaries shown. The country's dream project of Chandrayaan - to send an unmanned payload on an indigenously built PSLV to the moon, is also depicted on the panels.

The future plans to develop reusable launch vehicles and efforts to put a 4,000-kg payload into the geo-synchronous orbit of 36,000 km amply demonstrate the high confidence level of the scientists.

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