S. Unnikrishnan Nair (Indian Scientist) Biography

Quick Info

Profession	Scientist
Nationality	Indian
Birthplace	Kottayam, Kerala, India
Date of Birth	20/06/1964
Age	62 years

Latest News about S. Unnikrishnan Nair

31/07/2025

S. Unnikrishnan Nair completed his tenure as Director of the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) on 31 July 2025. A. Rajarajan succeeded him as director from 1 August 2025, and Nair transitioned to the role of Dr. Vikram Sarabhai Professor at VSSC.

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Bio/Wiki

Dr. S. Unnikrishnan Nair is an Indian aerospace engineer and scientist specializing in launch vehicle design, contributing to PSLV, GSLV, and LVM3 mechanisms.

Physical Stats & More

Height	173 cm
Eye Color	Dark Brown
Hair Color	Black

Educational Qualification(s)

B.Tech	Mechanical Engineering (Kerala University)
M.Tech	Aerospace Engineering (IISc Bangalore)
PhD	Mechanical Engineering (IIT Madras)
MA	Telecommunications and Space Law

Personal Life

He completed his schooling at VKVM NSS High School in Manjoor, Kottayam, Kerala.

Relationships & More

Marital Status	Married

Family

Father	Sreedharan Nair
Mother	Rajamma
Spouse	Jaya G. Nair
Children	Aishwarya Nair Chaithanya Nair

Career

ISRO

Service Years	1985-present
Major Designations	Deputy Director of the Structures Entity at Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) Director of the VSSC (2022-present) Programme Director of Advanced Space Transportation System Director of Human Space Flight Centre (HSFC), Bengaluru (2019-2022) Director of Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology (IIST) (2022) Director of the VSSC (02/2022-present) Founding Director of Human Space Flight Centre, Bengaluru Additional charge of Director at Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology (2022-2024) Dr. Vikram Sarabhai Professor at VSSC (2025-present)
Awards, Honours, Achievements	Team Excellence Award from ISRO for working on the SRE Experiment (2007) ISRO Individual Merit Award for working on the Gaganyaan project (2014) ISRO Excellence Award for leading a team in the Crew Escape System Pad Abort test (2018) Honourary Doctorate by the Sathyabama Institute of Science and Technology for his work in the Gaganyaan project (2019) Atmanirbhar Award from the Indian Society of Analytical Science (ISAS) (2022) The National Systems Gold Medal from the Systems Society of India (2022)

Social Media

LinkedIn	https://www.linkedin.com/in/unnikrishnan-nair-b3790b144

Some Lesser Known Facts

1. S. Unnikrishnan Nair is an Indian Scientist at ISRO.
2. He founded the Human Space Flight Centre (HSFC).
3. ISRO has honored him multiple times for leading projects under the Gaganyaan initiative.
4. In 2022, he took charge of the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC).
5. He was part of the team that worked on Chandrayaan-3, which landed on the Moon in August 2023.
6. He has completed various engineering courses overseas.
7. His interests involve reading and traveling.
8. He did his schooling at VKVM NSS High School in Manjoor, Kottayam, Kerala.
9. He established the Astronaut Training Centre in Bangalore.
10. He specializes in launch vehicle design and contributed to PSLV, GSLV, and LVM3 mechanisms.
11. He was involved in the Space Capsule Recovery Experiment (SRE) from inception to accomplishment in 2007.
12. His spouse Jaya G. Nair was a former Computer Engineer at VSSC.
13. He currently serves as the Dr. Vikram Sarabhai Professor at VSSC after completing his tenure as Director in July 2025.

S. Unnikrishnan Nair Scientist Indian Kottayam, Kerala, India