Indian astrophysicist Annapurni Subramaniam has made history by becoming the first Indian woman to receive the prestigious COSPAR Vikram Sarabhai Medal for contributions to space research.

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• Annapurni Subramaniam received the 2026 COSPAR Vikram Sarabhai Medal during the 46th COSPAR Scientific Assembly held in Florence, Italy, in August.
• She became the first Indian woman and the fourth Indian recipient of the prestigious award recognising outstanding contributions to space research.
• Earlier Indian recipients were U R Rao in 1996, Gurbax Singh Lakhina in 2014 and Anil Bhardwaj in 2024.
• The COSPAR Vikram Sarabhai Medal was established in 1958 to promote international cooperation and recognise important space research in developing countries.
• Subramaniam has more than three decades of research experience, published around 175 research papers and guided 15 doctoral students.
• She became the first woman to serve as Director of the Indian Institute of Astrophysics in 2019, marking a major milestone.
• She contributed to AstroSat as calibration scientist for the Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope and led its in-orbit calibration and performance verification.
• She is the Principal Investigator of INSIST and has also contributed to India’s participation in the international Thirty Meter Telescope project.