V Narayanan has been appointed as the new Secretary of the Department of Space and Chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), succeeding S Somanath, who concludes his tenure next week.

The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet officially announced Narayanan’s appointment, effective from January 14, for a term of two years or until further notice.

With nearly four decades of experience at ISRO, Narayanan has held several key positions, most recently serving as the Director of the Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre in Valiamala.

He is recognized for his expertise in rocket and spacecraft propulsion and played a pivotal role as the Project Director for the C25 Cryogenic Project associated with the GSLV Mk III launch vehicle.

Narayanan joined ISRO in 1984 and has contributed significantly to various projects, including work on the Solid Propulsion area of sounding rockets and prominent launch vehicles like the PSLV.

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He holds an M.Tech in Cryogenic Engineering from IIT Kharagpur, where he graduated with first rank in 1989.

As he steps into his new role, Narayanan’s extensive background in space technology positions him to lead ISRO in its future endeavors.