Living up to rocket boys’ dreams

News: The recent series named Rocket Boys on SonyLIV explores the friendship between the two legendary scientists — Homi J. Bhabha and Vikram Sarabhai.

One is the father of the Indian nuclear programme and the other is the pioneer of India’s space research. This article discusses how far India has succeeded in fulfilling their aspirations.

What was the ambition of Homi J. Bhabha?

First, he wanted to make India self-reliant in energy by harnessing nuclear power and develop India’s first atomic bomb to counterbalance external threats to the country.

Second, he believed that India must develop nuclear capabilities, as well as an atom bomb, to become a nuclear power. In October 1965, he announced over All India Radio that India could develop a nuclear bomb in 18 months. He was a two-time Nobel Prize nominee, and he died in 1966 during a plane crash in the Swiss Alps.

How far India has succeeded in fulfilling Bhabha’s aspirations?

India conducted its first nuclear test, “smiling Buddha” in 1974. After that there were three underground nuclear tests at Pokhran in 1998. Then India declared itself a full-fledged nuclear state, which was one of Bhabha’s dreams.

What are the existing issues in fulfilling Bhabha’s aspirations?

One, in terms of energy self-reliance via atomic power, the progress has been slow. There is huge demand for clean and reliable source of energy but the share of nuclear power generation has not exceeded 4 per cent.

Two, in 2021, the Parliament was informed that N-power generation capacity would increase to 22,480 MWe by 2031. But India’s nuclear power capacity stood at 6,885 MWe from 23 reactors in 2021.

In India, 18 nuclear reactors have a capacity of less than 300 Mwe in comparison to South Korea which has 24 nuclear reactors with a capacity of three times that of India. Also, China has 43 reactors and one reactor has a capacity of 1,000 Mwe.

How far India has succeeded in fulfilling ambitions of Sarabhai?

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has done enough to make him proud. For example, record of sending 104 satellites at one go, 27 satellite missions and 25 launch vehicles in the past five years.

Chandrayaan-1 discovered water on the sunlit side of the moon, and Chandrayaan-2 confirmed the presence of water ice in the dark regions. It reignited global interest in lunar research and colonisation. Mangalyaan mission was completed in its first attempt with the least cost.

There are some upcoming missions which promises great future for Indian space sector. For example, Aditya-L1, the first Indian observatory class mission to study the solar corona and Venus orbiter Shukrayaan-1 (2024), Chandrayaan-3 (2022) and Mangalyaan-2 (2024). India is also planning to set up its space station by 2030.

What are the existing issues in fulfilling the ambitions of Sarabhai?

One, the challenges and competition are growing. For instance, the Chandrayaan-2 Vikram lander crashed on the lunar surface in 2019, Gaganyaan the country’s first human spaceflight mission has been delayed.

Two, India’s Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark-III, which carried Chandrayaan-2, doesn’t have the same thrust as the giant Saturn V rockets that were used in NASA’s Apollo programme. Though India is providing space opportunities on a budget but the entry of private companies, such as SpaceX and Blue Origin, has brought tough competition.

Source: This post is based on the article “Living up to rocket boys’ dreams” published in Business Standard on 12^th Feb 2022.