On International Women’s Day, 2024, let’s pay tribute to women breaking the glass ceiling and paving the way for the next generation of women in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields.
Dr Ritu Karidhal Srivastava’s story serves as a reminder that nothing is impossible with hard work and determination in the field of science.
Known as India’s ‘Rocket Lady’, Dr. Ritu Karidhal was the mastermind behind India’s two most successful space missions: Mangalyaan and Chandrayaan-3. On August 23, 2022, Chandrayaan-3 landed on the moon’s surface, making it India’s most successful space mission to date. Dr. Karkhidhal’s journey is truly remarkable. From her childhood fascination with the sky and space to becoming the Deputy Director of the Mars Orbiter Mission, she has reached great heights.
Dr. Karidhal was born in 1975 in a middle-class family in the city of Lucknow. From an early age, she had a keen interest in the heavens and space. She used to collect news articles about the space agencies like India Space Research Organization (ISRO) and NASA.
Despite facing obstacles, Dr Karidhal worked hard in her studies. She completed her B.Sc.(Physics) & M.Sc.(Aeronautical Engineering) from the University of Lucknow. She went on to complete her M.Sc.(Engineering) from the Indian Institute of Information Technology (IISc), Bangalore. She also served as a researcher for six months at Lucknow University.
Inspiring Career
In November 1997, Ritu Karidhal, an engineer joined the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) as part of the Mission Analysis section in a group led by Raja Kesava. Her story in ISRO is full of experiences that include working as Director-in-Office of the Chandrayaan 2 mission and as well as Deputy Operation Director of the Mars Orbiter Mission. It must be stated that the Mangalyan mission appears as ISRO’s most successful venture. This mission made India the 4th country to reach Mars in less than 18 months and at a much lower cost to the taxpayer (₹ 450 crores). A craft autonomy system was invented by Dr.Karidhal which was to provide conceptual support and aimed for its implementation. This mechanism would allow the satellite to independently perform its assigned tasks even in space and react to an event of failure by any of its systems. Dr. Karidhal also served as the Mission Director of Chandrayaan -2, India’s 2nd lunar exploration mission.
Mars Orbiter Mission
Ritu faced one of the toughest tests of her ability when she was delegated as the deputy operations director for India's Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM), Mangalyaan-1, in 2012. India, having been involved for the first time in interplanetary travel, was under this project’s tight time constraint and the vast weight of the expectations. Ritu's defining downtime positioned her in the domain of autonomy building, which is commonly termed the 'brain' of the spacecraft.
Considering the consolidated distances and the intricacy of the signal transmission, Ritu created artificially intelligent software that can identify different space situations and make decisions on its own. The Development included close cooperation from scientists, electrical engineers, and mechanical engineers as well. It is noteworthy to mention that the autonomy system was successfully built by the most compacted period i-e 10 months.
The project goes ahead as the model of cost saving and in return, it ranks as the most triumphant project of the interplanetary journey. Mangalyaan-1's 2013 launching into the orbit of Mars became a historical achievement as it sent the first unmanned vehicle into the orbit of the red planet in its first attempt. The picture of the crew of multi-ethnic women scientists participating in the mission, paraphernalia of which was aired around the world, was the symbol of the time. Ritu's activities were also very much in the news with her and her fellow female ISRO (Indian Space Research Organization) members popularly referred to as 'Rocket Women of India'.
In addition to the Mangalyaan-1 project she also had to handle the balance of personal and work life, just like every woman scientist. Her schedule became so busy that she worked till late at night after helping her children with homework. Her kids didn’t understand why she became so busy all of a sudden, she said. But with the right amount of time management, she was able to manage everything. Ritu believes that family life and work should not be separated. She believes that challenges such as family responsibilities, pregnancy breaks, etc. are part of life and should be accepted as part of it. Although she did feel exhausted at times, watching the results of all her hard work was very rewarding. With the success of Mangalyaan 1, Ritu went from being an enthusiastic space enthusiast to becoming one of India’s most famous space scientists overnight.
Leader Of Chandrayaan 3
Chandrayaan-3, the massive lunar mission of India touched down on the moon’s surface on August 23, a decent stride at a very hefty price for the nation's space program. Set off from Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota, on the 14th of July, 2023, this mission finally became successful after approximately 4 weeks of journeying on the 23rd of August, 2023.
Approximately 54 female engineers and scientists were assigned to the Chandrayaan-3 mission and they managed many vital functions. Chandrayaan-3 mission was designed under the leadership of a senior scientist, none other than Dr. Ritu Karidhal Srivastav, and became the third Indian moon mission.
Empowering Women
Dr. Karidhal is a substitute for all females who on the one hand have been operating on a par with men in career life and on the other hand have been successfully taking care of their family responsibilities. She is called "Indian Rocket Woman” and is the embodiment of invincibility and newest achievements. She invariably points at her senior experts who supported her in the upliftment of her professional career.
In February 2019, she delivered a TEDx Hyderabad speech, in which she explained how women should have the self-assurance needed to carry out their duties well. She said, “I never really do care about the judgments of other people.” People allow themselves to make even the most unkind comments - we are not going to react to them, it's beyond our fault. Even back at home, I see familiar relatives or friends saying certain things but after they see the depth of work done or how they view ISRO or its impact on society, they choose their comment.
ACHIEVEMENTS
Ritu Karidhal in the year 2007 got the ISRO Young Scientist Award from then India's president A.P.J. Abdul Kalam. In 2015, she was one of the recipients of the ISRO Team Award, which honoured her contribution to the success of Mangalayaan. Ritu Karidhal was additionally marked in the BBC’s prestigious “100 Women” list for crushing gender imbalances in STEM. For this, she was also bestowed the presidency of a newly established Gender Equality Advisory Council (GEAC) by the United Kingdom’s Minister for Women and Equalities Liz Truss after the UK assumed the presidency of the Group of Seven countries. Some awards included the ASI Team Award, 2017 by the Society of Indian Aerospace Technologies & Industries (SIATI), Women Achievers in Aerospace.
Gender equality has always been a concern for her. During the G7 summit in the United Kingdom(2021), she was proposed to be a part of the Gender Equality Advisory Council (GEAC), which also had the backing of Liz Truss, Minister for Women and Equalities in the United Kingdom.
Dr. Karidhal’s world is dominated by the love of her husband, Avinash, who brings her peace and bliss along with two kids, Aditya and Anisha. Avinash and her kids are the ones who are adamant fans of music. For her, they are a voice of never-ending encouragement, and her drive to excel keeps her on the path of space exploration.
