UL Space Club of Uralungal Society gives wings to dreams of Kozhikode kids
Vadakara: UL Space Club, a non-profit, voluntary organisation under Uralungal Labour Contract and Co-operative Society Ltd, has been making headlines by nurturing great talents who have the potential to contribute immensely towards the growth of Indian space science and technology.
Aryaraj, who secured a seat in IISER (Indian Institute of Science Education and Research) for astrobiology, overcoming the challenge of cerebral palsy; Adidev (studying in class 7) who is going to be part of a satellite production project; 3-year-old Kavitha Pradeep who has been selected for ISRO’s YUVIKA project; are all shinings stars from Kozhikode who are prodigies of the UL space club.
Meanwhile, the list of achievements continues to grow. Over the last three years, 15 students from the UL space club have secured seats in premium institutes of the country including the IITs, NITs, and IISER.
UL space club has also joined hands with ISRO in building a special satellite as part of the latter’s space project. The five crore project is being executed in collaboration with Kozhikode NIT, and Bengaluru-based Anand Technologies.
ISRO recognition in space education
The UL space club which was established in 2016 has been recognized by the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) as a registered space tutor which can independently conceive programs and events to promote space education. The club was even invited to witness the Chandrayaan-3 launch in Sriharikota. Former ISRO director E K Kutty is the mentor of the UL space club. He is supported by former ISRO deputy director K Jayaram in his endeavours.
A 17-member panel of students decides on the activities of the club. Classroom interaction, study camps, presentations, star gazing, and publishing the half-yearly E-magazine called the ‘Stellar Chronicle’ are among the activities of the club.
Study classes, training sessions, and camps are organised under the supervision of renowned astronomers. Several study tours were conducted to the ISRO centres as well.
So far, the club has organised over 60 webinars. Teacher U K Shajil acts as the chief coordinator. Teachers T Damodaran, Surendran Punnassery, and Dr Sandesh EP also help in conducting the events.