V Narayanan (ISRO Chairman)

Some Lesser Known Facts About V Narayanan

• V Narayanan and his siblings went to a Tamil medium school near their house.

• Their home got an electricity connection when Narayanan was in Class 9.

• V Narayanan was the Class 10 topper in his school.

• He was ranked first in his college in the Diploma in Mechanical Engineering (DME).

• Later, V Narayanan received an Associate Membership in Mechanical Engineering from the Institution of Engineers (AMIE).

• After finishing his formal education, he worked for about a year and a half in Trichy and Ranipet in Tamil Nadu.

• V Narayanan was employed at companies such as TI Diamond Chain Limited, Madras Rubber Factory, and Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL).

• In 1984, he joined ISRO and started working in the Solid Propulsion department at the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC).

• He worked on Sounding Rockets, Augmented Satellite Launch Vehicle (ASLV), and Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV).

• V Narayanan contributed to making and controlling ablative nozzle systems, composite motor cases, and composite igniter cases.

• In 1989, after completing his M.Tech., he started working in the Cryogenic Propulsion department at the Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre (LPSC).

• V Narayanan played a major role in developing India’s cryogenic propulsion systems. He helped in developing and testing important parts like the gas generator, sub-scale cryogenic engines, and thrust chambers.

  

• His work helped India to become one of the few countries with its cryogenic propulsion technology.

• As a project director of the C25 Cryogenic Project, V Narayanan led the design and development of the C25 Cryogenic Propulsion System for the GSLV Mk-III Launch Vehicle.

• Under his leadership, the system was developed quickly and successfully added to the GSLV Mk-III vehicle.

• In 2018, V Narayanan became the director of the Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre (LPSC).

• He supervised the development of liquid, semi-cryogenic, and cryogenic propulsion stages for launch vehicles. He also oversaw chemical and electric propulsion systems for satellites.

• During his five-year tenure as a director, LPSC produced 164 liquid propulsion systems for 41 launch vehicle missions and 31 spacecraft missions.

• Under V Narayanan’s leadership, LPSC developed propulsion systems for Chandrayaan-2 and Chandrayaan-3. These included the L110 Liquid Stage and C25 Cryogenic Stage for the LVM3 propulsion systems. These were important in taking the spacecraft from Earth to the Moon’s orbit.

• In 2023, V Narayanan led the Failure Analysis Committee for Chandrayaan-2, which had a crash landing of Vikram Lander, an Indian spacecraft.

• He provided solutions that led to the success of Chandrayaan-3, where the Vikram Lander safely touched down at Shiv Shakti Point, the landing site of Chandrayaan-3.

  

• For the Gaganyaan program, India’s human spaceflight mission, V Narayanan worked on Human-rating the LVM3 vehicle.

• He developed the human-rated L110 and C32 Cryogenic Stages, created the Environmental Control and Safety Systems, and designed the propulsion systems for the Service and Crew modules.

• As Chairman of the Mission Readiness Review for the Test Vehicle (TVD1) mission, V Narayanan guided the demonstration of the crew escape system.

• He is a Fellow of the Indian National Academy of Engineering, the Institution of Engineers (India), the Indian Cryogenic Council, and the Aeronautical Society of India.

• On 7 January 2025, V Narayanan was appointed Chairman of the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO). The announcement was made by the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances, and Pensions, Department of Personnel and Training.

• During his two-year tenure as ISRO chief, he also served as the Chairman of the Space Commission.

• V Narayanan is the Chairman of the Project Management Council-Space Transportation System (PMC-STS), which oversees all launch vehicle projects and programs.

• He is also the Chairman of the National Level Human Rated Certification Board (HRCB) for Gaganyaan, India’s planned human spaceflight mission.