Overview

Broad Research Areas

Space Physics:

Under the broader area of space physics, the SPASC division is involved in the investigations of solar terrestrial interactions, solar effects on the interplanetary medium, earth’s magnetosphere-ionosphere-thermosphere interactions, space weather and its effects on societal applications, mesosphere-lower thermosphere dynamics, building of ground- and space-based optical and radio instruments. The Division is gearing up to play an important role in the forthcoming Indian satellite programs, namely, Aditya-L1 mission, the dual satellite Aeronomy mission, DISHA, and missions to Venus/Mars, wherein PRL is the Science lead of ISRO’s DISHA mission.

 Various space-based payloads are getting ready, namely, Aditya Solar wind Particle EXperiment (ASPEX) for Aditya-L1 mission, Langmuir Probe (LP), Drift Meter (DM) and Airglow photometer (AP) for DISHA mission and Narrow-band Airglow emissions for Venusian Atmosphere (NAVA) for Venus mission. These space-based measurements will open up unprecedented opportunities to pursue cutting-edge science that is at the forefront of global research.

SPA-SC faculty are playing lead roles in major international programs such as the PRESTO (Predictability of the Variable Solar-Terrestrial Coupling) of the Scientific Committee on Solar -Terrestrial Physics (SCOSTEP).

Atmospheric Sciences:

The research in this area pertains to study of physicochemical and radiative processes in the lower atmosphere, tropospheric-stratospheric interactions, and middle-atmospheric dynamics, wherein high quality and outstanding research with focus on characterisation of atmospheric aerosols, their spatial and temporal variations, their linkages with physical, chemical and dynamical process and their impact on environment, radiation budget, radiative forcing and climate are conducted through state-of-the-art   observations and modelling studies, in addition to measurement and modelling of ozone, volatile organic compounds and other trace gases, cloud characteristics and boundary layer dynamics. SPA-SC faculty lead several projects of ISRO, namely, the Atmospheric Trace Gases-Chemistry, Transport, and Modelling (AT-CTM), Indian Lidar Network (ILIN) under the ISRO Geosphere Biosphere Programme (IGBP), and serve as Principal Investigator in Aerosol Radiative Forcing Over India (ARFI) under the IGBP, and the National Carbonaceous Aerosols Programme (NCAP) Carbonaceous Aerosol Emissions, Source apportionment and Climate impacts (COALESCE) under the Ministry of Environment, Forests, and Climate Change.

The research work in this Division involves dealing with various experimental data obtained through various ground- and space-based experiments and building theoretical framework and simulations to explain and compare the observed results.  

Instrument facilities

 The divisional activities include strong experimental programs in various domains of atmospheric and space sciences utilizing state-of-the-art instruments as follows: