KOCHI: The Space Club of Lal Bahadur Shastri Institute of Technology for Women (LBSITW) in Thiruvananthapuram created history on Monday when they handed over a satellite to Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre.
WESAT, is India’s first satellite payload to be built by an all-women team and the first such project from Kerala. It is also the first satellite developed by an institute to be launched by ISRO in the upcoming PSLV mission.
WESAT’s purpose is to measure UV rays in space and on Earth’s surface and their influence on the warm temperatures and climate change phenomena in Kerala. This isn’t an information that is readily available in the state. With a monitoring station, the college hopes to provide real-time updates on the WESAT website, which can be accessed by anyone.
“The idea for the WESAT project originated with the 2017 batch of students part of the Space Club. We didn’t have much idea then. However, subsequent batches conducted extensive studies. Then, during the pandemic months, when we finally had time to invest in the project, we created a comprehensive project proposal and submitted it to ISRO. We received a call from them a month later and our work was on,” says Lizy Abraham, the principal investigator of WESAT.
The work that began in 2019 took nearly four years to complete. “We had many ups and downs, but we succeeded through our hard work and determination,” shares a delighted Devika D, the student coordinator of the project.
Gopika P S, one of the first students of the space club, says, “WESAT is not just a project, but an emotion. I always dreamt of learning astrophysics and working with NASA or ISRO. During my high school days, I even sent an email to NASA asking them for a job,” Gopika recalls.
“Choosing electronics and communications for my BTech was influenced by noted ISRO scientist G Madhavan Nair, who too graduated in the same subject. The initiation of the Space Club during that time aligned perfectly with my life goals,” she adds.
Another alumna, Kousalya R, who actively participated in the Space Club, expressed her joy about WESAT’s success. “I’m thrilled! It was after much struggle that we identified a sensor for sun intesity. But sadly, we had to graduate before the project was complete. Our juniors showed so much enthusiasm. A big salute to them and Lizy ma’am,” says Kousalya.
The satellite is slated to be launched on the PSLV C58 mission of ISRO, which will see payloads from across the country also launched. WESAT will be the sole representation from Kerala for the mission.