India’s Mangalyaan in Mars’ Orbit: Want to Become a Space Scientist?

India has created history today (Wednesday, 24th September 2014) by becoming the first Asian country to reach Mars and the first one in the world to enter Martian orbit in its maiden attempt.

Launched by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), Mangalyaan, the Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) passed a crucial test early this week and has now successfully entered the red planet’s orbit.

This latest achievement not just highlights India’s desire to expand boundaries of knowledge but also sheds light on its growing interest in the field of space research and technology.

Such missions also trigger enthusiasm among young star-gazers who are now keen to unravel the mysteries of the universe. Read all about Career in Astronomy!

However, the fact that there are not enough institutes in India offering undergraduate and postgraduate courses related to space science is a point of concern.

“There are few universities which have full-fledged postgraduate courses in astronomy and astrophysics. Apart from IIST, Osmania and Pondicherry Universities offer master’s programmes in these subjects. IIST is the only institute where astronomy and astrophysics form an appreciable part of the curriculum of the science stream at the undergraduate level,” points out a senior faculty from the astronomy department at the Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology (IIST), Thiruvananthapuram.

“Compared to some Western countries, India does lag behind as far as facilities like large telescopes are concerned. But that is changing with India’s participation in large global projects like the TMT (Thirty Metre Telescope) and SALT (South African Large Telescope).”

IIST has a core course on introduction to astronomy and astrophysics. While entry to the bachelor’s course is through JEE (Joint Entrance Exam) scores; clearing the GATE (Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering) or JEST (Joint Entrance Screening Test) is a must for the MS programme (astronomy and astrophysics).

Osmania University in Hyderabad offers master’s programmes in astronomy and astrophysics. Besides, Pondicherry University also offers an M.Sc in astrophysics.

As far as career prospects are concerned, “Pursuing a PhD in astronomy and astrophysics throws open a lot of opportunities, especially with upcoming facilities like TMT where India is a stakeholder. There are dedicated research institutes like Indian Institute of Astrophysics, Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics, Raman Research Institute, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, National Centre for Radio Astrophysics, to name a few, that offer jobs in a range of fields,” says the IIST faculty.

Source: hindustantimes.com