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.
