Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav: ISRO Unveils 'SPARK', India's First Virtual Space Museum

Amid Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav celebrations to commemorate 75 years of independence, ISRO unveiled 'SPARK', India's first virtual space museum on Wednesday, August 10. 

The three-dimensional virtual space tech park called SPARK is a fun-filled park that includes a museum, a theatre, an observatory, a garden with life-sized rockets, a lakeside cafe area, a children's play area, and several other attractions.  ( Image Source :ISRO )

Amid Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav celebrations to commemorate 75 years of independence, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) unveiled 'SPARK', India's first virtual space museum on Wednesday, August 10. 

S Somanath, chairman of ISRO, launched the virtual space museum for public use. SPARK will showcase digital content related to different ISRO missions in an interactive manner. 

As India celebrates #AzaadiKaAmritMahotsav, ISRO unveiled the Virtual Space Museum “SPARK”,
showcasing interactive digital content pertaining to various missions. Chairman, ISRO/ Secretary, DoS launched it today. Beta-version: https://t.co/thomkz5d3Zhttps://t.co/wSkuwhwxKP pic.twitter.com/F7gUpJI104

— ISRO (@isro) August 10, 2022

On the platform, one can see various documents, images, and videos related to ISRO launch vehicles, satellites, and scientific machines, according to the official website of the Indian space agency. 

One can access the beta version of the virtual space museum through the ISRO website, or visit https://spacepark.isro.gov.in/introduction.html. 

Virtual Tour Of SPARK

The beta version of the platform provides a virtual tour of SPARK. One can virtually board a bus called Space on Wheels. In April 2022, ISRO shared a documentary titled "Space on Wheels", which portrays an exhibition of 75 Indian satellites as part of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav celebrations. The documentary also highlights ISRO's upcoming missions including the Gaganyaan Programme and Chandrayaan-3 mission. 

The three-dimensional virtual space tech park is a fun-filled park that includes a museum, a theatre, an observatory, a garden with life-sized rockets, a lakeside cafe area, a children's play area, and several other attractions. 

There is a Solar System park in which the sizes of the different planets, from Mercury to Neptune, and that of Earth's Moon have been displayed. 

The museum exhibits ISRO's achievements, satellites and launch vehicles. In the virtual tour, one can also see the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) and the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) Mark III. 

In the theatre, a movie depicting ISRO's missions will be played. 

People can use arrows to virtually move to different places in the space park.