Dr. Sreedhara Panicker Somanath is a Distinguished Scientist (Apex Grade) and Secretary, of the Department of Space (DoS), Chairman, of the Space Commission, and Chairman. He is an expert in the field of space technology and systems engineering of launch vehicles and has made significant contributions in many areas. He became Chairman of ISRO on 14 January 2022. Dr.Somnath has a career spanning 38 years in the field of space technology and systems engineering of launch vehicles. Before that, he did Aerospace Engineering at IISC Bangalore and started working as an Aerospace Engineer as a career. He began his career at ISRO in 1985 as an associate and later joined LPSC and VSSC. Throughout his career, he has held various roles such as serving as the PROJECT MANAGER for the POLAR SATELLITE LAUNCH VEHICLE (PSLV), Deputy Director for the Structures Entity/Propulsion & Space Ordnance Entity, and Project Director of the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle. In 2015, he assumed the position of Director of Liquid Propulsion Systems.

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Specialization

Dr. Somanath the chairman of ISRO specializes in system engineering of launch vehicles and has made significant contributions to the development of PSLV, and LVM3, and provided technical leadership for designing the GSLV MkIII.

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The Mission

ISRO Chairman Somanath presented a brief statement about the satellites that will be launched shortly. These ideas include the communication satellites for the DTH application as well.

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Vision

 The vision of Somanath for the future projects of ISRO is,

• The Gaganyaan Project 
• The Bharatiya Anta Mishka Station
• Zero Debris(Debris-free Space Mission by 2030)
• Human Mission to the Moon by 2040

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Enhancement

On May 25, 2024, U.S. Ambassador Eric Garcetti visited ISRO headquarters and met with Chairman S. Somanath to discuss a potential collaboration between ISRO and NASA for future projects. They discussed plans for Earth observation, Lunar space flight, and Lunar exploration. Additionally, they proposed the development of a QUAD Satellite through a partnership involving India, the US, Japan, France, and Australia.

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Important Speeches 

• S.Somanath delivered a speech at the Ninth International Food Convention (IFCoN - 2023) hosted by the Central Food Technological Research Institute (CFTRI) in collaboration with the Association of Food Scientists & Technologists (India) - (AFST-I).
• The event took place at the convocation hall of the Karnataka State Open University (KSOU) and focused on promoting Small Scale Industries involved in food processing on a large scale in the country.
• He made a speech on the topic Your computer knows you better than your friend in Guwahati.

View on Alien Existence

In a TV interview where the interviewer asked about the existence of Aliens, Dr.Somanath said “Yes, Alien is also a life form like Bacteria and fungus. He argues that there is another life form present in the universe because Earth cannot be the place where it originated”

Awards

• Performance Excellence Award at ISRO in 2009.
• Honorary Doctorate @ Satyabhama University, Chennai in 2018.
• National Aeronautics Prize by Aeronautical Society of India @ October 2019.
• Honorary Doctorate by Centurion University, Bhubaneshwar in October 2020.
• Space Gold Medal from the Astronautical Society of India.
• Team Excellence Award for  GSLV Mk-III realization.
• Honored with Second highest civilian award  Rajyotsava Awards @ 68th Karnataka Rajayotsava Awards.
• TKM College of Engineering honored him in terms of naming one of their mechanical labs as “SOMANATH CENTRE”.

These are some of the Honorary Awards he won for his dedication to space and science.

11th ISRO Chairman

Somanath was appointed as the 11th Chairman of ISRO. He was a successor to K. Sivan who was the former chairman of ISRO. He is the 5th Chairman from Kerala after K.Radhakrishnan who served from (2009 to 2014). He was appointed as the chairman of ISRO from the year (2022).

Using Artificial Intelligence in ISRO

Dr. Somanath has shared his thoughts on the impact of Artificial Intelligence on the advancement of various space-related fields including rocket development, space manufacturing, human space flights, space communications, and overall space innovations. He has also highlighted the significant role of Artificial Intelligence(AI) in the successful mission of Chandrayaan 3.

FAQs - Present ISRO Chairman

Q. What are the objectives of ISRO’s International cooperation?

Enhancing the capacity of the Indian Space program, Strengthening diplomatic relations, and formulating global guidelines on space.

Q. What after Chandrayaan-3?

Aditya-L1 Mission to study the Sun in unprecedented detail.

Q. What is the VENUS mission called by ISRO?

Currently, it is unofficially known as SHUKRAYAAN mission to study the surface and atmosphere of VENUS.

Q. What is the name of the autobiography of Somnath?

The name of the autobiography of Somnath is Nilavu Kudicha Simhangal.