Scienceville
International Space Agencies
India's space story began with a small rocket launched from Thumba in Kerala. Today, space agencies work together on a station that circles Earth every 93 minutes!
Did you know?
India's first rocket rose into the sky on 21 November 1963 from Thumba, Kerala. Thumba was chosen because it is very close to Earth's magnetic equator. The first rockets were put together in an old school building!
Aryabhata, India's first satellite, was launched in 1975 with help from the Soviet Union. It was named after the great Indian mathematician and astronomer (a scientist who studies stars and planets).
India's Mars Orbiter Mission (Mangalyaan) reached Mars on 24 September 2014. India became the first country to reach Mars orbit on its very first try, and the first in Asia to get there!
Try this: Balloon Rocket
Do this with an adult
Do this with an adult. Thread a long string through a drinking straw, and ask the adult to tie it tightly between two chairs. Blow up a balloon, pinch its neck shut and tape it to the straw. Let go! Air rushes out backwards and pushes the balloon forwards. Real rockets work the same way: hot gases rush out of the back and push them up!
Go further: A Home in Space
The International Space Station (ISS) is a giant laboratory in space, built and run by space agencies from many countries. With its solar panels, it is about as big as a football field. It zooms along at about 27,600 km per hour and goes once around Earth in about 93 minutes. That means the astronauts on board can see 15 or 16 sunrises every single day!