ISRO to join academia for space research projects

A total of 186 projects will be taken under the Sponsored Research Programme scheme. Under the scheme, financial support will be provided to academic institutions to carry out research projects in a wide range of topics in space technology, space science and space applications.

ISRO has taken five major programmes such as launch vehicle, satellite communications programme, earth observations programme, space science programme and meteorology.

Under the research programme, various projects including rocket and satellite technology, satellite energy systems, space electronics, space communication systems, orbital mechanics, computer sciences and new material development and remote sensing of the earth’s resources will be taken up.

In addition, space communication, satellite geodesy image processing, satellite meteorology including weather forecasting, physics of the ionosphere and magnetosphere, meteorology, dynamics of the atmosphere, geophysics, geology, astronomy, cosmology, astrophysics, planetary and interplanetary space physics and climatology will also be included as projects.

Chairman K Sivan said that ISRO has brought out a comprehensive document on ‘Research Areas in Space’, which will help prospective candidates to prepare research proposals of mutual interest. “This partnership with academia will be crucial in meeting the national demand to launch vehicle and satellite services”, he added.

Stating that ISRO is embarking upon many new areas of science and technology by taking up challenging technological assignments incessantly, he said in this important task of national importance, the space agency is looking for wider participation and contributions from academia in a focused manner for timely accomplishment of its goals.

“The main aim behind this is to showcase the emerging research and development areas of ISRO, so that the faculty of the academic institutions can take up the research projects in the area of their specialisation and expertise,” he added.

According to the ISRO’s proposal, the student or the researcher should select a suitable topic and prepare the proposal and submit to the concerned centre/unitfor consideration.