S. Unnikrishnan Nair

S. Unnikrishnan Nair is an Indian aerospace engineer presently serving as the director of Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC).^[1] He is known for his works in the field of launch vehicle design, Space Capsule Recovery Experiment (SRE), and Human Spaceflight Programme. Prior to his directorship of VSSC, he was Director of Human Space Flight Centre, Bengaluru.

S. Unnikrishnan Nair
Director of Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre and Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology
Incumbent
Assumed office 7 February 2022 (2022-02-07)
Preceded by	S. Somanath
Director of Human Space Flight Centre
In office January 2019 (2019-01) – 7 February 2022 (2022-02-07)
Preceded by	Position Established
Succeeded by	Umamaheswaran R
Personal details
Alma mater	Mar Athanasius College of Engineering (B. Tech) Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru (M.Tech., Aerospace Engineering) IIT Madras (PhD in Mechanical Engineering)

Early life and education

S. Unnikrishnan Nair was born to Sreedharan Nair, who was an employee at the Kottayam Survey Office, and Rajamma.^[2]

Nair received his B.Tech. degree in Mechanical Engineering from Mar Athanasius College of Engineering affiliated to Kerala University, ME in Aerospace Engineering from IISc, Bengaluru,^[3] and Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from IIT Madras, Chennai.^{[citation needed]}

Career

Nair joined VSSC in 1985. He is currently the director of Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre.

He was holding the additional charge of the director at the Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology during the year 2022 to 2024.

Personal life

S. Unnikrishnan Nair is married to Jaya G Nair, a former Computer Engineer at VSSC. The couple have two daughters.^[2]

Awards and honors

• ISRO Team Excellence Award for his contributions to SRE.^[4]