Google Doodle paid great tribute with Doodle on On Tuesday, August 23, the 104th birthday of renowned yet unheralded physicist and meteorologist Anna Mani . She is a well-known figure in Indian physics whose contributions have made it possible for us to anticipate the weather with precision.
In addition to weather forecasts, her efforts aided India’s success in the field of renewable energy. Her alma mater is interestingly shared by eminent scientists CV Raman, lawyers VL Ethiraj, and CP Ramaswamy Iyer, all of whom are from Tamil Nadu and attended Presidency College, Madras.
Anna Mani is regarded as a national symbol of women’s empowerment in the nation because she defied gender norms and achieved success in a male-dominated industry, shattering preconceptions. The life narrative of Anna Mani is presented here.
Google Doodle: Know about Anna Mani
On August 23, 1918, in the Keralan town of Peerumade, Anna Mani was born into a family of Syrian Christians. India was encouraged to work on renewable energy and weather forecasts by Anna Mani, an ardent reader.
There is a story about her upbringing where, at the age of 8, she turned down a pair of diamond earrings in favour of a set of Encyclopedia Brittanica.
She graduated in Physics and Chemistry from the prestigious Presidency College, Madras (now Chennai), and also got a research scholarship for the Indian Institue of Science (IISc). After that, she went to London’s Imperial College to study Physics and later got inclined toward meteorological instruments.
Before going to London, Anna Mani was a tutor at Women’s Christian College. At IISc, she studied spectroscopy under Nobel Laureate Sir CV Raman. In 1948, she returned to India to make weather instruments.
She live up to expectations and produced nearly 100 weather instruments for India. Later, she set up a workshop that produced instruments for measuring wind speed and solar energy.
While her entire life was inspirational, there are a few specific incidents that helped her become well-known worldwide. Anna was a scientist with Gandhian principles who wore Khadi clothing. She was not just a successful scientist but also a patriotic citizen who gave up a comfortable life abroad to serve for India.
She was an advocate for renewable energy. She established a network of solar radiation monitoring stations and authored numerous publications on measuring renewable energy in 1950. Her greatest contributions have been in the area of weather forecast measurement.
She was given the K.R. Ramanathan Medal by the Indian National Science Academy (INSA) for her achievements to the nation and science in 1987, when she assumed the position of Deputy Director General of the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD). In 2001, on
Google Doodle: What made Anna Mani a popular national icon?
Anna Mani’s life was an inspiring journey for many nationalists. She was a supporter of civil disobedience moevement and wore only Khadi as a symbol of her national identity.
After studying in London, she had the option to stay and work there. But her love for India brought her back home. As a result, she produced hundreds of meteorological equipment and contributed to the science of India.
