A. Rajarajan has officially assumed charge as Director of the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) effective 1 August 2025. He succeeds S. Unnikrishnan Nair in this role.
Before his appointment, Rajarajan served as Director of the Satish Dhawan Space Centre SHAR (SDSC SHAR) in Sriharikota. During his tenure, he led teams engaged in solid motor production and development of launch complex infrastructure to meet ISRO’s expanding launch requirements. Notable missions during this period included Chandrayaan-3, Aditya L1, the Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV), LVM3 M2 / OneWeb India-1, and Vikram-S—the first privately developed rocket launched with ISRO support. He also oversaw test vehicle missions such as TV-D1 under India’s Human Spaceflight Programme.
Rajajaran was also involved in the planning and development of a dedicated launch complex for SSLV, aligning with India’s evolving space policy.
With nearly four decades at ISRO, Rajarajan previously held deputy director positions at VSSC, contributing to composite systems for launch vehicles and spacecraft, including carbon–carbon composites. His work supported propulsion system development for SSLV and the creation of a dedicated unit for space ordnance at VSSC.
He has been President of the Indian Society for Advancement of Materials and Process Engineering (ISAMPE) since November 2023 and holds a patent in Film-Boiling Chemical Vapor Infiltration (CVI) technology. His research has been published in international journals and conference proceedings. He also holds an honorary doctorate from Sathyabama University, Chennai, and has received ISRO’s merit and team excellence awards.
The Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, part of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), is responsible for the research and development of launch vehicle technologies and plays a central role in India’s space missions and propulsion systems.
