ISRO Scientist N Valarmathi, The Voice Behind Chandrayaan-3 Countdown, Dies Aged 64 – News18

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) scientist, N Valarmathi, who was the voice behind the countdown for the launch of many ISRO programmes, including the recent Chandrayaan-3 mission, died at the age of 64 due to a heart attack on Saturday.

According to reports, she was unwell for a while and breathed her last at a private hospital in Chennai. During the July 14 event, Valarmathi was heard giving the countdown for the rocket launch. Her last announcement was on July 30 when the PSLV-C56 rocket lifted off carrying 7 Singaporean satellites as part of a dedicated commercial mission.

According to ISRO PRO, N Valamathi was a valued member of the Range Operations Programme Office at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, where she held the responsibility of announcing countdowns for all launches for the last six years.

Former ISRO scientist and director P V Venkitakrishnan wrote on X (Formerly known as Twitter), “The voice of Valarmathi Madam will not be there for the countdowns of future missions of ISRO from Sriharikotta. Chandrayan 3 was her final countdown announcement. An unexpected demise. Feel so sad. Pranams!”

The voice of Valarmathi Madam will not be there for the countdowns of future missions of ISRO from Sriharikotta. Chandrayan 3 was her final countdown announcement. An unexpected demise . Feel so sad.Pranams! pic.twitter.com/T9cMQkLU6J

— Dr. P V Venkitakrishnan (@DrPVVenkitakri1) September 3, 2023

Valarmathi was born on July 31, 1959, in Ariyalur, Tamil Nadu. She did her schooling at Nirmala Girls Higher Secondary School. She completed her Bachelor of Engineering degree at the Government College of Technology, Coimbatore. It was followed by her Master’s degree in Electronics and Communication from Anna University.

N Valarmathi dedicated her career to the ISRO since 1984. She contributed to numerous missions such as Insat 2A, IRS IC, IRS ID and TES. Her remarkable journey led her to become project director for many projects. One of them was India’s inaugural domestically-created Radar Imaging Satellite, RISAT-1. It achieved a successful launch in 2012. She was the second woman in the country to do so.

She was also the inaugural recipient of the Abdul Kalam Award in 2015. The prestigious award was established by the Government of Tamil Nadu in honour of the former president Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam.