Dr V Narayanan has been appointed the new Secretary of the Department of Space and Chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro).
An official order from the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet stated that Narayanan has been appointed to serve in these roles for the next two years, until further notice. He will succeed the current Isro chairman, S Somanath, assuming the office on January 14.
Somanath assumed charge as the Secretary of the Department of Space on January 14, 2022, for a three-year term.
Who is Dr V. Narayanan?
Narayanan, who is a rocket and spacecraft propulsion expert, currently serves as the Director of the Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre (LPSC). He joined the Isro in 1984 and has held several key positions within the space agency before becoming director of LPSC.
He started his career in the space sector by working in the Solid Propulsion area of Sounding Rockets and Augmented Satellite Launch Vehicle (ASLV) and Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) at Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC).
He further contributed to the process planning, process control and realization of Ablative nozzle systems, composite motor cases and composite Igniter cases.
Notable Work
Narayanan was chairman of the National Expert Committee, which was constituted to study the reasons for the hard landing of the Chandrayaan-2 landership. The committee under his leadership, contributed to pinpointing the reasons and corrective actions required to overcome the observations. It realised and delivered all the Propulsion Systems for Chandrayaan-3.
As the Project Director for the C25 Cryogenic Project, Narayanan guided his team to successfully develop a crucial component of the GSLV Mk III rocket called the C25 Stage.
During his tenure at LPSC, he guided the development and delivery of 183 Liquid Propulsion Systems and Control Power plants for various Isro missions. He also played a major role in the development of the 2nd and 4th Stages of the PSLV, along with the control power plants for PSLV C57.
Narayanan has earned numerous prestigious awards for his exceptional contributions to India's space sector. It includes a Gold Medal from the Astronautical Society of India (ASI), Silver Medal from IIT Kharagpur, and the National Design Award from the NDRF.
