Astrophysicist Annapurni Subramaniam has
been awarded the COSPAR Vikram Sarabhai Medal 2026 for her outstanding
contributions to space research
¨
Astrophysicist Annapurni
Subramaniam has been awarded the COSPAR Vikram Sarabhai Medal 2026 for her
outstanding contributions to space research.
¨
She has become the first
Indian woman scientist to receive this prestigious award.
¨
The award was presented
during the 46th COSPAR Scientific Assembly held in Florence, Italy.
¨
Annapurni Subramaniam is
the fourth Indian to receive the medal.
¨
Before her, U. R. Rao
(1996), Gurbaksh Singh Lakhina (2014), and Anil Bhardwaj (2024) received the
award.
¨
She is the third woman
globally to receive the Vikram Sarabhai Medal.
¨
She has served as a
calibration scientist for the Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope (UVIT) onboard
AstroSat.
¨
AstroSat is India’s first
space-based telescope, launched in 2015.
¨
She is also associated
with the Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) international project.
¨
The Vikram Sarabhai Medal
is an international award jointly established by COSPAR and ISRO.
¨
The medal was established
in honour of Dr. Vikram Sarabhai, the founder of India’s space programme and
ISRO.
¨
Established in 1990, the
medal recognizes outstanding contributions to space research in developing
countries.
¨
The award is open to
candidates from any country, provided their relevant work was primarily carried
out during the five-year period ending one year before the COSPAR Scientific
Assembly at which the medal is awarded.
