Shaarook expressed his excitement over the news that his satellite will be launched by NASA. “I belong to Pallapatti, a small place in Tamil Nadu. I lost my father at a very early age but my mother motivated me to excel in space science, as my father was also interested in astronomy,” he told Sputnik.
The world smallest satellite, KalamSat, designed by Shaarook has been named after the former Indian President Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam.
“I am deeply impressed by late former President APJ Abdul Kalam, therefore the name of the satellite KalamSat is a tribute to him,” Shaarook told Sputnik.
KalamSat is made from 3-D printed carbon fiber. The satellite will be launched by NASA on June 21 from the Wallops Island, Virginia in a sounding rocket. The mission will last for 240 minutes. The world’s smallest and lightest satellite will be operational in micro-gravity environment of space for about 12 minutes. KalamSat will be used to exhibit how 3D-printed carbon fiber performs in these conditions.
