Who was the first Indian to travel into space?
- A.Kalpana Chawla
- B.Rakesh Sharma
- C.Ravish Malhotra
- D.Sunita Williams
Correct answer
Explanation
The correct answer is B, Rakesh Sharma. An Indian Air Force pilot, Rakesh Sharma flew to the Soviet space station Salyut 7 aboard a Soyuz spacecraft in April 1984 as part of a joint mission and spent about a week in orbit, carrying out experiments in biology and remote sensing. He is remembered for answering the Prime Minister's question about how India looked from space with a line from a well known song.
Option A, Kalpana Chawla, was the first woman of Indian origin in space, flying with NASA, and she died in the Columbia accident of 2003. Option C, Ravish Malhotra, was the backup pilot for the 1984 mission and did not fly. Option D, Sunita Williams, is another astronaut of Indian origin with NASA who has spent long periods on the International Space Station. Only Rakesh Sharma flew as an Indian citizen first.
Read the full article: Space Agencies and Missions of the World: Exam Notes
Practice Questions
View allWhat is the expansion of NASA?
- A.National Agency of Space Administration
- B.Navigational Aeronautics and Space Administration
- C.National Aeronautics and Space Administration
- D.National Aeronautics and Space Agency
Show answer
NASA is the civilian space agency of the United States, established in 1958 after the launch of Sputnik, with its headquarters at Washington DC.
Read the full explanation →The Indian Space Research Organisation was formed in which year?
- A.1962
- B.1969
- C.1972
- D.1975
Show answer
ISRO was formed on 15 August 1969, taking over the space work that had been carried on since 1962 by the Indian National Committee for Space Research.
Read the full explanation →Sputnik 1, the first artificial satellite of the earth, was launched in 1957 by which country?
- A.United States
- B.Soviet Union
- C.United Kingdom
- D.France
Show answer
Sputnik 1 was launched on 4 October 1957 and became the first artificial satellite to circle the earth, sending out a simple radio signal that stations across the world could hear.
Read the full explanation →Who was the first human being to travel into space?
- A.Neil Armstrong
- B.Yuri Gagarin
- C.Alan Shepard
- D.Alexei Leonov
Show answer
The Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin circled the earth once aboard Vostok 1 on 12 April 1961 and became the first human being in space, a flight that lasted about one hour and forty eight minutes.
Read the full explanation →What was the name of the first Indian satellite, launched in 1975?
- A.Rohini
- B.Bhaskara
- C.Aryabhata
- D.INSAT-1A
Show answer
India's first satellite was named after the ancient astronomer and mathematician Aryabhata and was launched on 19 April 1975 from a Soviet site, since India did not yet have a launch vehicle of its own.
Read the full explanation →