Sarees in space - The Indian women scientists behind the missions at ISRO.
written by Team - The Sky Explorers
This women's day it gives us great pleasure to bring to you stories of the women in saris who have defied all the odds and firmly planted the indian flag in space, standing shoulder to shoulder with men and dared to go where no indian women went before.
India's first interplanetary mission to planet Mars was launched onboard PSLV-C25 on November 05, 2013. Making ISRO the fourth space agency to successfully send a spacecraft to Mars orbit. MOM completed 7 years in its orbit on Sept 24, 2021.
A photograph went viral showing women dressed in gorgeous saris with flowers in their hair celebrating at the Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) in the southern city of Bangalore.
Let's welcome the women in saris which lead the race to space in India's premier space programs. We The sky explorers present this Women's Day- women who not only make us proud but also stand tall in a man's world. Let’s meet Ritu Karidhal - ALSO CALLED THE ROCKET WOMEN OF INDIA,Deputy Operations Director, Mars Orbiter Mission, Chandrayaan 2 mission director and a lead in Chandrayaan 3 team.
(Image credit: Lokmat https://images.app.goo.gl/T1s22WT19gidecuM8)
Growing up in the city of nawabs and tehzeeb a little girl would often wonder about the size of the moon, how and why it decreased or increased, what lay behind the dark spaces.
Her growing up years were spent scouring daily newspapers for information about NASA and ISRO projects ,collecting news papers and every little detail related to space science.Ritu loved math and physics. After getting her postgraduate degree, "I applied for a job at Isro and that's how I became a space scientist", she says.
It's been 24 years and Ms Karidhal has worked on several projects at Isro, including the prestigious Mars mission, Chandrayaan 2 and Chandrayaan 3 which has thrust her and her colleagues into the limelight. Ritu is hailed as an incredible asset to ISRO and India , her groundbreaking achievement in the Chandrayaan 3 mission to the moon has garnered her praise and respect from all over the country and the globe.
Born in a middle class family and lack of resources only made ritu more determined to make her dreams real . A mother ,a wife and a scientist Ritu inspires every girl to reach for the stars because she has opened the gates to the universe for every girl who dares to dream and proved that hard work and dedication makes you achieve all that one aspires for.