Professor (Ashesh Prosad) A. P. Mitra
Professor (Ashesh Prosad) A. P. Mitra FNA, FASc, FRS (21 February 1927 – 3 September 2007) was a Physicist, who headed the National Physics Laboratory (NPL) in Delhi from 1982 to 1986, India and was the Director General of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) from 1986 to 1991. He is primarily known for his work on Environmental Physics. Radio & Space Physics was his area of specialization. He performed major work in the field of earth’s near-space environment, through group based and space techniques. His work on cosmic radio noise for studying the upper atmosphere led to a series of discoveries in ionosphere, solar physics and cosmic rays. He was awarded the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for Physical Science in 1968. The citation read – Dr Mitra is one of the acknowledged authorities on ionosphere and on some aspects of space research. His pioneering work on the use of cosmic radio noise for upper atmosphere studies resulted in a whole series of scientific discoveries in ionosphere, solar physics and cosmic rays. He has carried out comprehensive studies on the ionospheric effects of solar flares and has established one of the most extensive radio flare systems at the National Physical Laboratory. He developed an atmospheric model from observations of satellite drag and initiated new D region rocket experiments. Dr Mitra’s work on ion and neutral chemistry in the upper atmosphere, especially on the minor constituent nitric oxide, provided the basis for much of our present knowledge about the lower ionosphere. He has contributed substantially to the establishment and operation of the International Spacewarn System and the International Ursi-gramme and World Day Service. He died in New Delhi in September 2007, where he left his two daughters and wife, Sunanda.
He has strongly supported the need of such a Institute on Sustainability since March 1999 and had played a pivotal role in bringing IISD in July 2007 at New Delhi, who was also a Founding Member to IISD’s Board Of Advisers, since it’s inception.
