S. Somanath Appointed New Chairman of ISRO

• 13 Jan 2022

• Eminent rocket scientist S Somanath has been appointed the new chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) as well as the Space Secretary.
• He succeeded K Sivan who completed his extended tenure as ISRO chief.
• His appointment as the Space Secretary and the Space Commission Chairman is for a combined tenure of three years from the date of joining of the post.
• The post of the ISRO chairman, the Space Secretary and the Space Commission chief is usually held by one person only.
• Mr Somanath is the 10th chairman of ISRO.
• Prior to this, he was Director of Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC).
• Mr Somanath is an expert in the area of system engineering of launch vehicles.