K. Radhakrishnan (ISRO) Age, Wife, Family, Biography & More

Bio/Wiki
Full name	Radhakrishnan K Koppillil
Profession	Scientist
Famous for	Chairman of ISRO (2009-2014)
Physical Stats & More
Height (approx.)	in centimeters- 170 cm in meters- 1.70 m in feet & inches- 5’ 7”
Eye Colour	Black
Hair Colour	Salt and Pepper
Career
Field/Area	• Electrical Engineering • Space Research
Major Organizations	• Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre • National Remote Sensing Agency • Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services • Indian Space Research Organisation • Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur
Appointments	• Avionics design and development engineer (1971-1981) • Director of Budget & Economic Analysis for ISRO (1981-1997) • Director of the VSSC (2007-2009) • Chairman of ISRO (2009-2014) • Director of NRSA (2005-2008) • Chairman, Board of Governors of Indian Institute of Engineering Sciences &Technology, Shibpur (2015-2017) • Chairperson, Board of Governors of Indian Institute of Technology, Ropar (2020-2023) • Chairperson, Oversight Committee-Science & Engineering Research Advisory Board (2022-2023) • Chairman, Governing Council of Indian Institute of Astrophysics, Bangalore (2023) • Member of Space Commission (2022) • Advisor at ISRO (2016-2017) • Honorary Distinguished Advisor at ISRO (2018) • Chairman, Standing Committee of the IIT Council (2019) • Chairperson, Board of Governors of IIT Kanpur (2019)
Missions	• Chandrayaan-1 • Chandrayaan-2 • Mars Orbiter Mission (Mangalyaan)
Awards, Honours, Achievements	• K.R. Ramanathan Memorial Gold Medal of the Indian Geophysical Union (2003) • VASVIK Industrial Research Award in Electrical and Electronics Sciences & Technology (2005) • Silver Jubilee Honour by the Ministry of Earth Sciences (2006) • BHASKARA Award of Indian Society of Remote Sensing (2008) • Social Sciences Award of the International Academy of Astronautics (2009) • Dr. Y. Nayudamma Memorial Award of the Andhra Pradesh Academy of Sciences (2009) Social Sciences Award of the International Academy of Astronautics (2009) • Distinguished Alumnus Award” from IIT Kharagpur and IIM Bangalore (2010) • Vikram Sarabhai Memorial Award of The Indian Science Congress (2010) • Athivishishta Rajakeeya Puraskaram – “Sastra Ratna” by the Pazhassiraja Charitable Trust (2010) • Distinguished Alumnus Award of IIT, Kharagpur (2010) • Distinguished Alumnus Award of IIM, Bangalore (2010) • ISRO's Lifetime Achievement Award (2014) • Ernst & Young Lifetime Achievement Award (2014) • Technovation-Sarabhai Award of Indian Electronics & Semiconductor Association (2014) • Padma Bhushan (2014) • Allan D Emil Memorial Award from The International Astronautical Federation (2014) • Lifetime Achievent Award of Union Bank of India (2015) • Lifetime Outstanding Innovation Award Indore Management Association (2015) • Bharat Asmita Vigyan Tantragyaan Shreshta (2015) • P.C. Chandra Purashkar for Lifetime Achievement (2015) • Lifetime Achievement Award, Engineers' Forum, Nagpur (2016) • Global Indian (Science) Award of Times Network (2017) • Qimpro Platinum Standard 2018 (Business)
Personal Life
Date of Birth	29 August 1949 (Monday)
Age (as of 2023)	74 Years
Birthplace	Irinjalakuda, Kerala
Zodiac sign	Virgo
Nationality	Indian
Hometown	Thrissur, Kerala
School	• National High School, Irinjalakuda • Christ College, Irinjalakuda
College/University	• Government Engineering College, Thrissur, Kerala • Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore (IIMB) • Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur
Educational Qualification(s)	• Bachelor’s Degree, Electrical Engineering from Government Engineering College, Thrissur, Kerala (1966-1970) • Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.) from the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore (IIMB) (1974-1976) • Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Strategic Management of Earth Observation Systems from the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur (1996 - 2000)
Religion	Hinduism
Hobbies	Singing, Dancing, Reading
Relationships & More
Marital Status	Married
Marriage Date	1 July 1983
Marriage Place	Guruvayur Temple
Family
Parents	Father name- K P Krishnan Kutty Menon Mother name- Koppillil Ammini Amma (Government teacher)
Siblings	Brother name- Sivadasan (Scientist/Engineer SG (Retd.)) Sister name- Radha
Wife/Spouse	Padmini Kizhakke Valappil (worked at State Bank of Travancore from 1980 to 2010)
Other Relatives	Maternal Aunt- Kallianikutty Amma (Mathematics teacher) Maternal Uncle- Balakrishnan Menon (Bank Manager) Maternal Uncle- Jayaraman (Deceased; mathematics teacher) Maternal Aunt- Jaya (Deceased; science teacher)
Style Quotient
Car Collection	Standard Herald
Favourites
Book	The Spiritual Heritage of Saint Tyagaraja by S. Radhakrishnan and C. Ramanujachari
Music	Carnatic music

Some Lesser Known Facts About K. Radhakrishnan

• He wrote a thesis titled “Some Strategies for Indian Earth Observation System” in 2000 for his doctorate at the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur.

• Radhakrishnan joined the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) of ISRO in 1971.

• As the director of the VSSC, he led the successful launch of PSLV–XL that launched Chandrayaan-1. He also led the successful launches of several other PSLVs.

• As the Chairman of ISRO, he executed 37 space missions. The Chandrayaan-2 mission was also redefined under his guidance. He also led the Mars Orbiter Mission (Mangalyaan). The success of GSLV-D5 was also under the directorship of Radhakrishnan at ISRO.

• As the director of NRSA, he contributed to building India’s modern multi-mission ground station at Shadnagar for Earth Observation Satellites.

• He is the Founding Director of the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS). Also, he was the first Project Director of India’s Tsunami Early Warning System.
  

  K Radhakrishnan at INCOIS

• During 2001-05, he also held the position of Vice Chairman of the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO.

• K Radhakrishnan is a Kathakali dancer. He learnt the dance form from Tripunithura Vijayabhanu and T.V.A. Varier. He is also skilled in Carnatic music which he learned from R. K. Srikantan and Nookala Chinna Satyanarayana.

Dr. K. Radhakrishnan, who used to be the chairman of ISRO, is singing Carnatic music at Koodalmanikyam Temple in Kerala.

He is skilled in Carnatic music and is also a Kathakali dancer.

Bharat has consistently been a place where science, spirituality, and culture come… pic.twitter.com/amJcRfGDeF

— महारथी-മഹാരഥി (@MahaRathii) September 28, 2023

• At the Koodalmanikyam temple in his hometown, he gave his first stage performance in Carnatic music in 1980.

• K Radhakrishnan published more than 55 publications, including 12 in reputed journals and eight in edited books.

• In 2019, Radhakrishnan showcased his musical skills at Guruvayoor Chembai Music Festival.
  

  Radhakrishnan’s performance at Guruvayoor Chembai Music Festival, 2019

• His wife Padmini is affectionately called as Mini. She worked with the State Bank of Travancore from 1980 to 2010.

• Radha and Mini have no children of their own. After retirement, they spend time with their niece’s son. They treat him as their own grandchild.

• Radhakrishnan and his sister were named after his mother’s younger sister Radha who died due to typhoid in 1946.

• Radhakrishnan presented the first copy of his autobiography to the then-President of India on 17 November 2016. The book was titled “My Odyssey: Memoirs of the Man Behind the Mangalyaan Mission” and was co-authored by Nilanjan Routh.
  

  On 17 November 2016, Radhakrishnan presented the first copy of his book My Odyssey – Memoirs of the Man Behind the Mangalyaan Mission to President Pranab Mukherjee