Contents
A. P. J. Abdul Kalam
Helping develop India’s launch vehicles and missiles before serving as president.
SLV-III · Missile development
- Born
- 15 October 1931
- Birthplace
- Rameswaram, India
- Died
- 27 July 2015
More people
A. P. J. Abdul Kalam
An Indian aerospace engineer and science administrator who later became president of India from 2002 to 2007. Education and communication with students were prominent in his public life.
Early life
Rameswaram childhood
Grew up in a family in the island town of Rameswaram.
Scientific training
Studied physics and then aerospace engineering.
Career
- 1960s
Defence and space research
Began engineering work before moving into India’s space programme.
- 1980
Satellite launch
Led the SLV-III project that placed a Rohini satellite in orbit.
- 1980s–1990s
Missile programmes
Held leadership roles in defence research and missile development.
- 2002–2007
Presidency
Served as India’s eleventh president.
Projects & contributions
SLV-III
An important step in India’s domestic satellite-launch capability.
Missile development
Helped direct the integrated guided-missile programme.
Wings of Fire
An autobiography written with Arun Tiwari.
Beyond engineering
Teaching
Continued meeting students and teaching after his presidency.
National recognition
Received the Bharat Ratna in 1997.
Sources & photo credit
Life, career and references ↗Photo: Government of India. GODL-India · Original image. Cropped and displayed in monochrome.
