Jawaharlal Nehru Planetarium hosts National Space Day event in Bengaluru

The Jawaharlal Nehru Planetarium in Bengaluru hosted a celebratory event for National Space Day, featuring presentations on India’s space exploration history and future goals.

Prof. Annapurni Subramaniam, director of the Indian Institute of Astrophysics, discussed the decade-long AstroSat mission. She highlighted the Ultra-Violet Imaging Telescope (UVIT), an indigenous technology conceived at the IIA that has been instrumental to the mission since 2015.

JNP director Dr. BR Guruprasad reviewed India’s space program since 1963, specifically noting the Chandrayaan missions. He emphasized that Chandrayaan-1 conclusively detected water on the Moon and noted that the Chandrayaan-2 orbiter continues to provide high-resolution imagery. He also referenced the Union government’s roadmap to land Indian astronauts on the lunar surface by 2040.

The event included educational activities for approximately 300 students, including a quiz competition and a space vehicle model-making workshop.