26 INTERVIEW
16 year old slum boy discovered asteroid near earth
“ Your dreams are your wings that help you to fly, go face the world and reach for the sky!”
Aryan Mishra is not the usual 16-year-old. At an age when most of us are confused, anguished creatures just coherently driving towards existence, Aryan is busy scaling the night sky, discovering asteroids and giving inspirational talks across the world. At the young age of 14, this passionate space enthusiast discovered a near-Earth asteroid in a nation-wide search campaign( All India Asteroid Search Campaign). His discovery has been designated as 2014 00372 and is soon to be made a part of the world’ s minor body catalogue maintained by the International Astronomical Union in Paris. The‘ Near-Earth Objects’ discovered are asteroids that have been nudged by the gravitational attraction of nearby planets into orbits that allow them to enter earth’ s neighbourhood.
What invoked your interest in space?
I first got interested in the subject of space when I saw the planet Saturn from a telescope. I was 11 years old then, and the beauty and magnificence of the planet left me amazed. It was then that I decided that I want to become an astronaut, if not for that an aerospace engineer.
I have been scouring the night sky ever since then; the asteroid discovery made by me was done under All India Asteroid Search Campaign in association with IASC in 2014.
Why do you think astronomy is important?
Astronomy is important not just for scientific reasons that are space research but is also essential for increasing economics, trade
WINSPIRE: Empowering youth | December, 2016