It was a proud moment for not only scientists from the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) but for every Indian when Vikram soft-landed in the uncharted southern polar region of the moon on August 23.
Among the ISRO scientists behind the moon mission was Raja V.L.N. Sridhar who hails from south coastal Andhra Pradesh and comes from a humble background. A student of the P.V.R. School in Ongole, he rose to become the Team Lead for development of Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) instrument in Chandrayaan-3 and has been contributing to the development of scientific instruments for interplanetary exploration missions.
‘’The collective effort, dedication, and brilliance of thousands of ISRO’s scientists and engineers had made India shine brightly on the global stage,” points out Mr. Sridhar who had his intermediate education in C.S.R. Sarma College Ongole later. India’s journey to the moon and its incredible soft-landing had just opened immense possibilities, he observed in a conversation with The Hindu on Tuesday.
‘’Each passing day, we are inching closer to unveiling the lunar world’s secrets. Chandrayan-3’s mission is about paving the way for a future where the moon can be a stepping stone to the stars. The dream of using lunar resources to fuel human exploration of the cosmos is no longer distant fantasies but concrete possibilities,’‘ asserts the scientist who pursued M.Sc in Physics at the Acharya Nagarjuna University P.G. Centre, Nuzvid and M. Tech in Laser Technology in IIT, Kanpur, later.
Rover’s discovery of sulphur on the lunar surface has immense significance. Sulphur can be a game-changer, a potential future fuel source, and a means to extract life-sustaining oxygen, points out the scientist at Laboratory for Electro-Optics Systems, ISRO, Bengaluru. ‘‘This revelation drives us to investigate further, particularly in the vicinity of the ‘Shiv Shakti’ point,’‘ he explains. The APXS (Alpha Particle X-ray Spectroscope), another instrument on the rover, further reconfirmed the ‘sulphur’ finding that was announced by the LIBS instrument earlier.
The legacy of Chandrayaan-3 would resonate through the ages, inspiring generations to reach for the stars and beyond, feels the scientist, who has won ISRO Young Scientist Award and Team Excellence Award with his contribution to scientific Instrument development for Mangalyaan and Chandrayaan missions.
His progression from a school student in Ongole to becoming one of ISRO’s leading scientists serves as an inspiration to the youth, motivating them to aspire to become future space scientists, says G. Little Flower, Professor of Physics, Dean of Students Affairs, Maris Stella college, Vijayawada.
