World Space Week: ISRO Propulsion Complex space exhibition in Coimbatore

08-10-2026 · English

Topics: Science · 8 October 2026 Current Affairs (UPSC / TNPSC / SSC / RRB)

News

For World Space Week, the ISRO Propulsion Complex (IPRC), Mahendragiri, with Sri Krishna College of Engineering and Technology, Coimbatore, held a three-day space exhibition on 5–7 Oct 2026. It had models, videos, expert talks on human spaceflight, launch vehicles and propulsion, and telescope sky-watching; entry was free for students and the public.

Key facts

Background

• World Space Week was declared by the UN General Assembly in 1999. 4 Oct – launch of Sputnik-1 (1957); 10 Oct – the Outer Space Treaty came into force (1967).
• IPRC is at Mahendragiri, Tirunelveli district; once part of the Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre (LPSC), it became a separate centre in 2014. It tests cryogenic, liquid and semi-cryogenic engines and rocket stages.
• ISRO was founded on 15 Aug 1969, is headquartered in Bengaluru and works under the Department of Space. India's first satellite, Aryabhata (1975), was launched from the Soviet Union.
• History: India's first rocket was launched on 21 Nov 1963 from the Thumba Equatorial Rocket Launching Station (TERLS) in Keralam.
• Gaganyaan is India's human spaceflight programme; human-rating tests of its engines are done at Mahendragiri.

Tamil Nadu link: the foundation stone for India's second spaceport, for Small Satellite Launch Vehicles (SSLV), was laid at Kulasekarapattinam, Thoothukudi district, in Feb 2024. IPRC Mahendragiri tests Gaganyaan engines.

Source: Covai Mail, Oct 2026; IPRC website; Space.com (theme)

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