Bengaluru, May 5 (IANS): The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and the Central University of Himachal Pradesh (CUHP) have inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for cooperation in the areas of space situational awareness (SSA), astronomy and astrophysics.

Shantanu Bhatawdekar, Scientific Secretary, ISRO, and Sat Prakash Bansal, Vice-Chancellor, CUHP, Dharamsala, signed the MoU on Thursday.

Continuous analysis of the collision threats posed by growing number of space objects is essential to safeguard Indian space assets. Reliable Indian space activities require tracking and monitoring these objects with the help of observational facilities. This leads to mounting interest in space situational awareness and need for capabilities to track and monitor not just the operational satellites, but also the non-functional uncontrolled space debris.

The MoU signed between the two organisations will pave the way for future collaborations between ISRO and CUHP in establishing the observational facilities, specifically ground based optical sensors for space object tracking, deep space exploration, R&D related to astrophysics and Near Earth Objects (NEO).