Monday, February 16, 2009

Chandrayaan inspires students in India

MUMBAI: When Chandrayaan-I soared into space last October, so did the dreams of many young and aspiring IITians keen on a career with the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). Says a professor from IIT-Bombay's aerospace engineering department, "Ever since Chandrayaan lifted off, space has become the magic word among students."

Two fourth year BTech aerospace students, Shashank Tamaskar and Kartavya Neema, are already doing a research project on interplanetary flight.

Says Shashank, "Inspired by Chandrayaan-I, I am doing a study on a satellite's flight from Leo to the moon." He started work on the project in August 2008, when Chandrayaan was being primed for its historic launch, and hopes to complete it in a year.

Asked if he would like to join Isro, he says, "Definitely, after I complete my studies." The budding rocket scientist said that the focus among students earlier had been on designing planes, but "with the success of Chandrayaan, most of us are talking about designing rockets and satellites".

Kartavya says he is designing a flight path for a satellite to Mars. "For both of us, the inspiration came from Chandrayaan," he confirms, adding thathe'd love to work at ISRO.

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