So what is SPARK?

SPARK is an acronym for The Space Tech Park - a brain child of the CBPO department of the Indian Space Research Organization. It is basically a virtual technical park with a virtual museum situated as well on its campus. You can roam around clicking the arrows, visit different locations, interact with few of the objects and obtain a lot of information on each item. It also includes a Theatre where you can watch a choicest selection of videos curated by the team of ISRO and also the main museum building which houses two galleries – The launch vehicle gallery and the satellite gallery. You can learn more about the scientists of ISRO as well whilst you are here. ISRO required an innovative yet interactive way to showcase their digital content to the world and SPARK was born!

The Design

Developing a space tech park for one of the biggest space agencies in the World by itself was a huge challenge! To showcase so many achievements in a limited space was a mindboggling task but we did try our best. The first question was where do we actually situate this museum. That’s when we got an idea of placing it where the action actually occurs – Sriharikota. Sriharikota is a town in India where ISRO launches their rockets into space on the shores of the Bay of Bengal – the east coast of India.

In the walkthrough if you carefully notice, you can see the second launch pad at a distance from the café.

As for the monuments in the park, we wanted to showcase a mix of astronomy and also achievements of ISRO. Time and the concept of time has been by far the first and most important discovery by mankind. Hence, the larger-than-life Sun dial at the entrance. As you move ahead, you get a glimpse of ISRO’s space on wheels bus! Six of these busses have actually been commissioned and are travelling the length and breadth of India explaining space science concepts to kids as we speak! We are also proud to have contributed to two exhibits on these busses!

For the Selfie loving folk, we added an I love ISRO and selfie point. Space suits which kids can stand behind and take photos and feel proud of the fact that India shall very soon be part of the elite club of human space faring nations!

A location very close to our heart is the legacy garden. We included this to showcase the humble beginnings of the Indian Space Research organisation. How parts of the rocket were taken using a cycle. The famous Thumba church where the rocket parts were assembled and the HQ of ISRO known as INCOSPAR. We also included the first satellite of ISRO – the apple being transported using the bullock cart along with the first sounding rocket of ISRO – the Nike apache!

The main building is inspired by the bees. The bees are inspirational in building their colonies with great structural integrity using a hexagonal structure. Keeping this in mind, we designed the main tower and 3 side towers in a hexagonal fashion.

At the centre to the museum is a large atrium displaying the Human rated Launch Vehicle or HRLV which will be carrying our very first Indian astronauts to space! To the left is a launch vehicle gallery displaying the 4 major launch vehicles of ISRO. To the right of the atrium is a satellite gallery where you can view 3 categories of satellites ISRO has launched into space. Outside the galleries, you can also observe a hall of fame with a few of the most famous scientists ISRO has had in the past.

The Inauguration

As part of the auspicious occasion of ISRO’s Azaadi ka Amrit Mahotsav, SPARK was inaugurated on 10th August, 2022 by the Chairman of ISRO, Shri Somnath S at his office at ISRO Headquarters, Bangalore. The program began in the august presence of all Centre-Heads of ISRO who virtually connected. Director of the CBPO, ISRO described the work done along with inputs from the Chairman.

Our moment of limelight was when the Chairman called us in front of the cameras and introduced us to everyone for having designed and developed the site. We are truly indebted to everyone present there for this joyous moment!