Space Foundation Hosts KSC Event Honoring ISRO Chairman

On Friday, February 1, the Space Foundation hosted a special reception honoring the visit of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) Chairman G. Madhavan Nair. The reception, co-sponsored by Space Florida, was held at the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) visitor's complex, in the Debus Center overlooking the historic rocket garden. It capped a series of activities for ISRO and NASA, including the signing of a memorandum of understanding that will enable future cooperation on space activities.

More than 120 guests, including Nair, NASA Administrator The Honorable Michael Griffin Ph.D., Indian Ambassador to the United States Raminder Jassal, KSC Director Bill Parsons, as well as senior leadership from both ISRO and NASA, elected officials, community leaders, and senior space industry representatives attended. Nair; Parsons; Steve Kohler, president and chief executive officer, Space Florida; and Steve Eisenhart, senior vice president/general manager, strategic communications, Space Foundation, each spoke.

During remarks, Nair emphasized India's desire for closer cooperation and their plans to continue investing in space capabilities that have direct, positive impacts on the people of India. This event was part of Nair's first visit to the U.S. as ISRO Chairman. The goal of this noteworthy trip was to promote greater awareness of ISRO's activities and strengthen ties with the U.S. government's civil space programs.

Pictured: Eisenhart, Nair, and Parsons

This article is part of Space Watch: March 2008 (Volume: 7, Issue: 3).