UoP, ISRO to launch satellite for study on rice

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UoP, ISRO to launch satellite for study on rice

The Biophysics section of the Department of Physics of the University of Pune (UoP) has tied up with the Indian Space Research Organisation
(ISRO) to send a satellite named Space Recovery Experiment II (SRE -II) into space to study the effects of micro gravity on the production of rice.

The experiment is the brainchild of Pandit Vidyasagar, head of the biophysics section, and will be sent into space by ISRO. This is the first such satellite experiment to take place in the state. Addressing a news conference here on Wednesday, Vidyasagar said, "The experiment was pitched as part of the Space Capsule Recovery Experiment of ISRO and a proposal to that effect was sent. Our experiment was selected and ISRO will send this satellite in the last quarter of 2009."

"The UoP proposal was one among those submitted by some of the most prestigious institutes in the country, including the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore as well as the University of Kerala. The expenses, which will be to the tune of Rs 75 to Rs 85 crore, will be borne by ISRO," said Pramod Kale, an advisor to the UoP ISRO chair, who was also present at the news conference. After the proposal was made to ISRO, it took six to eight months for the tie-up to materialise.

The Biophysics department has conducted this experiment at its laboratory with an instrument called the clinostat, designed and developed by the laboratory. The instrument studies the effects of microgravity. This instrument creates conditions of microgravity as it is present in space. Speaking about the results of this experiment, Vidyasagar said, "The study carried out on the rice seeds showed that microgravity accelerated the growth of the crop.

source: TOI