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Sari worn during historic Mars mission finds home at Smithsonian
On 1 December 2013, Nandini Harinath arrived at India's space agency headquarters in a striking red and blue silk sari-a garment now displayed at the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC.
The mission's defining moment
Harinath, deputy operations director for India's Mangalyaan Mars Orbiter Mission, chose the sari-gifted by her father-for what she called the project's "single most critical day." Inside the control room, her team executed a high-stakes maneuver to propel the spacecraft out of Earth's orbit and onto a 300-day trajectory toward Mars.
"It was do-or-die," Harinath recalled in a 2016 interview. "The entire mission hinged on that operation. We had to determine the spacecraft's path, timing, and execution."
Success came on 24 September 2014, when Mangalyaan entered Martian orbit, making India the fourth entity to achieve the feat.
Breaking stereotypes and capturing global attention
A photograph of sari-clad women celebrating at the Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) went viral, challenging perceptions of India's space program as male-dominated. While Isro later clarified that the women in the image were administrative staff, it confirmed that female scientists, including Harinath, were present in the control room during the critical operation.
From personal keepsake to museum exhibit
Matt Shindell, the Smithsonian's space history curator, reached out to Harinath in 2020 to discuss an artifact representing India's Mars mission. "The image of these 'Rocket Women' was compelling," he said. "We wanted to tell their story."
Harinath offered the sari she wore on the mission's pivotal day. After it arrived at the museum, textiles conservator Beth Knight studied draping techniques via YouTube to prepare it for display.
Shindell drew parallels between the sari and other iconic mission attire, such as Gene Kranz's vest from Apollo 13. "It has a family resemblance to garments worn during historic moments in space exploration," he noted.
A first for the Smithsonian's interplanetary collection
The sari is the first object from India in the museum's interplanetary science collection-and its first sari. Displayed in the "Futures in Space" gallery, it sits beside Sally Ride's 1983 shuttle mission t-shirt, the first American woman in space.
The exhibit explores motivations behind space exploration, with Harinath's sari symbolizing both national pride and the personal journey of a female scientist. "It represents India's achievements and inspires women in STEM," Shindell said.
Visitors can learn more about the sari via an interactive touchscreen. "It's thrilling to see people engage with the story behind it," Shindell added.
