National Space Day 2024: Meet India's Female Astronauts and Scientists Breaking Barriers

New Delhi: On National Space Day 2024, India not only celebrates its growing prowess in space exploration but also honours trailblazing women who have me significant contributions to this journey. From astronauts to scientists, Indian women have been at forefront of some of most groundbreaking projects in space history of India, challenging stereos and setting new benchmarks in a tritionally male-dominated field.

India Celebrates 1st National Space Day: Origin, me, Significance

Kalpana Chawla

One of most iconic figures in India’s space history is Kalpana Chawla, first woman of Indian origin to travel to space. Born in Haryana, Chawla journeyed from a small town to NASA’s space shuttles Columbia and Endeavour. Although her life was tragically cut short during Columbia disaster in 2003, her legacy continues to inspire millions of young girls in India to dream big and reach for stars.

Kalpana Chawla (17 March 1962 – 1 February 2003) was an Indian-born American astronaut and aerospace engineer who was first woman of Indian origin to fly to space. She first flew on Space Shuttle Columbia in 1997 as a mission specialist and primary robotic arm operator aboard STS-87.

Sunita Williams: Bridging India and America in Space

Sunita Lyn Williams, anor astronaut of Indian descent, has me significant contributions to space exploration. Born to an Indian far and Slovenian mor, Williams holds record for longest spaceflight by a woman, spending 195 days aboard International Space Station (ISS) during her mission in 2006-2007. She is an American astronaut, United States Navy officer, and former record holder for most spacewalks by a woman (seven) and most spacewalk time for a woman (50 hours, 40 minutes). Her far, Deepak Pandya, was an Indian-born neuroanatomist from Mehsana district, Gujarat, while her mor, Ursuline Bonnie Pandya (née Zalokar) was a Slovene-American

Muthayya Vanitha: Women Behind Chandrayaan-2

success of ISRO’s Chandrayaan-2 mission in 2019 brought to light crucial role of women in India’s space program. Muthayya Vanitha, first woman to le an interplanetary mission at ISRO, served as Project Director for Chandrayaan-2. She is an Indian electronics system engineer who has led projects on satellites at Indian Space Research Organization. She hails from Chennai. She completed her schooling at Boiler Plant School Trichy. he gruated from College of Engineering, Guindy. Vanitha has worked at ISRO for over three deces.

Ritu Karidhal: Rocket Woman of India

Ritu Karidhal Shrivastava, known as "Rocket Woman of India," was Mission Director of Chandrayaan-2 mission. She is an Indian scientist and aerospace engineer working in Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). She was also a Deputy Operations Director for India's Mars orbital mission, Mangalyaan. She has been referred to as one of many "Rocket Women" of India. Giving tribute to her excellence in Mangalayaan mission, a Bollywood film Mission Mangal was created where Indian actress Vidya Balan played her role.

Tanisha Bhatia

Anor outstanding female scientist is Tanisha Bhatia, who joined ISRO in 2014 and served as Project Manager of Sensor Team for Lunar Lander Chandrayaan-3. She studied at DPS Ghaziab, Meerut and earned a BTech from Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology (IIST) in Trivandrum.

Kalpana Kalahasti

Born in 1974, K Kalpana of Chennai is an Indian scientist and Electronics and Communication Engineer working in Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). In 2000, she joined ISRO as a scientist. Initially, Kalpana worked on various satellite projects and played a key role in successful launch of several communication and remote sensing satellites. She became a part of Chandrayaan-2 mission a landmark project for ISRO. In 2019, she was appointed as Associate Project Director of Chandrayaan-3 mission and was instrumental in designing and optimizing lunar lander systems.

Dr. Tessy Thomas: India’s Missile Woman

Dr. Tessy Thomas, often referred to as "Missile Woman of India," has been a key figure in India’s defence and space sectors. As Director General of Aeronautical Systems at Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), she played a vital role in Agni missile program.

She was born in April 1963 in Alappuzha, Kerala. She is an Indian scientist and former Director General of Aeronautical Systems and former Project Director for Agni-IV missile in Defence Research and Development Organisation. She is first-ever female scientist to he a missile project in India. She joined Defence Research and Development Organisation in 1988 where she worked on design and development of new generation ballistic missile, Agni. She was appointed by APJ Abdul Kalam for Agni Project.