The Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru, paid rich tribute to late scientist and leader Professor Roddam Narasimha, with the Aerospace Engineering Department naming their 0.5-metre diameter enclosed free-jet hypersonic wind tunnel after him.
It is a fitting tribute as Prof Narasimha, among his many scientific achievements, was a pioneer of experimental hypersonics in India. It was his visionary work in the 1970s and 1980s that laid the foundation for the high-speed aerodynamics research work being carried out in the country today. Naming the IISc facility after Prof Narasimha was an automatic choice among those in the aerospace department after he passed on 14 December 2020.
The name ‘Roddam Narasimha Hypersonic Wind Tunnel’ caught on quickly informally, according to Assistant Professor Duvvuri Subrahmanyam, but a formal naming ceremony had to wait until the world came out of Covid’s shadow.
The formality finally took place on Sunday (28 May) at the high-speed wind tunnel complex operated by the Turbulent Shear Flow Physics and Engineering Laboratory.
The chief guests were Dr Samir V Kamat, Secretary to the Department of Defence R&D and Chairman of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), and S Somanath, Secretary to the Department of Space and Chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).
Dr Kamat attended the event in person, while Somanath tuned in virtually, with a GSLV rocket launch from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre-Sriharikota Range (SDSC-SHAR) less than 24 hours away. Besides distinguished scientists from the aerospace community, such as Dr Kota Harinarayana, who was behind the design, development, and delivery of the light combat aircraft (LCA), the august gathering on Sunday included Prof Narasimha’s wife and daughter, Dr Neelima Narasimha and Dr Maithreyi Narasimha, respectively.
A commemorative stone was unveiled mid-programme by Dr Kamat and Somanath (virtually) to mark the formal dedication of the wind tunnel to Prof Narasimha.
Read More at https://swarajyamag.com/science/iisc-honours-aerospace-legend-late-prof-roddam-narasimha-by-naming-hypersonic-wind-tunnel-after-him-words-of-praise-from-isro-drdo-chiefs
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