Thumba Equatorial Rocket Launching Station

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Template:Infobox launch pad Thumba Equatorial Rocket Launching Station (TERLS) is an Indian spaceport established on 21 November 1963.[1] Operated by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), it is located in Thumba, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, which is near the southern tip of mainland India, very close to earth's magnetic equator. It is currently used by ISRO for launching sounding rockets.[1]

The first rockets were assembled in former St Louis High School, which houses now a space museum.[2] The local Bishop, Rev. Peter Bernard Periera, Bishop of Trivandrum, Vincent Victor Dereere (a Belgian) and district collector Madhavan Nair were instrumental in acquiring a large parcel of land measuring 600 acres from coastal community.[3] The Bishop Rev. Periera had given away the prayer hall and bishop's room in the local church for scientific pursuits of A. P. J. Abdul Kalam.[4] Then Minister of State for External Affairs, Lakshmi N. Menon helped a lot in smoothing the bureaucratic hurdles before the project at Delhi.[5] H. G. S. Murthy was appointed as the first Director of Thumba Equatorial Rocket Launching Station.[6]

Location[edit]

Thumba's[7] location at 8°32'34" N and 76°51'32" E is ideal for low-altitude, upper atmosphere and ionosphere studies. Thumba is a small fishing village situated close to the Thiruvananthapuram airport in Kerala.[8][9]

References[edit]

  1. 1.0 1.1 "Sounding Rockets - ISRO". www.isro.gov.in. Retrieved 11 September 2019.
  2. "Transported on a Bicycle, Launched from a Church: The Amazing Story of India's First Rocket Launch". The Better India. Retrieved 4 September 2019.
  3. ICM, Team. "When ISRO Aimed For the Heavens, a Tiny Church in Kerala Said Amen!". Indian Catholic Matters. Retrieved 26 October 2020.
  4. "Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam: Former President of India: Speeches : Details". abdulkalam.nic.in. Retrieved 26 October 2020.
  5. "Remembering the guiding light". www.deccanchronicle.com. Retrieved 26 October 2020.
  6. "I'm proud that I recommended him for ISRO: EV Chitnis".
  7. Ley, Willy. "Anyone Else for Space?". For Your Information. Galaxy Science Fiction. pp. 110–128.
  8. "Forty years in Space". www.rediff.com. India Abroad. Retrieved 10 May 2016.
  9. Ram, Arun. "Rocket science of south". The Times of India. Retrieved 12 November 2022.

External links[edit]

Coordinates: 8°32′34″N 76°51′32″E / 8.54278°N 76.85889°E / 8.54278; 76.85889

Template:Spaceport