Amateur astronomers from Coimbatore are at India’s first Dark Sky Reserve in Hanle, Ladakh to document the night sky

As a first in the nation, a Dark Sky Reserve tag will quickly be given to Hanle in Ladakh, a village about 4200 meters above sea stage in the Himalayas. “The Dark Sky Reserve is a space protected from lights to preserve the pristine night skies,” says Obuli Chandran, a science educator from the metropolis, including that it’s comparable to the standing given to locations resembling tiger reserves, protected areas for preserving the forest.

Obuli Chandran, together with Ganesh Raja M and G Aishwarya, a three-member crew of novice astronomers from Coimbatore, are collaborating in the first stargazing journey to the magical Hanle Dark Sky Reserve (HDSR) from September 23 to September 28. The Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIA) and Bangalore Astronomical Society (BAS) are collectively organizing the journey led by Dorje Angchuk of IIA, and Keerthi Kiran, Vishwanath SK, and Sudhash Natarajan of BAS. They are carrying an eight-inch, 10-inch and 12-inch Dobsonian telescopes, famously generally known as the mild buckets, together with a number of binoculars to scan the skies.

Hanle, situated in a rain shadow area, hardly receives any rainfall and has clear skies virtually two-thirds of a 12 months. It is a excessive altitude dry chilly desert. This can also be why the Indian Institute of Astrophysics has arrange its telescopes, like the Himalayan Chandra Telescope (HCT) amongst others, up there. The HCT is situated in one in every of the highest astronomical observatories in the world.

The goal of the journey is to make folks recognize astronomy, says Obuli. “The night sky holds wonders beyond our imagination. At Hale, you can see a star at every inch of the sky. We want to bring back those images to show people what a clear, dark sky can unravel and the need to preserve it. Another equivalent of such clear skies can perhaps be seen at the Thar desert in Rajasthan.”

He says traditionally the skies have at all times been appeared upon by folks throughout civilisations with cultural significance. As cities grew, lights started to flood them. “The fantastic thing about the night sky was obscured from our view. But all is just not misplaced but. There are areas far-off from metropolis lights, from the place the magic of the night sky can sweep you over. And the Himalayas is one in every of the most interesting locations in the world that gives pristine clear skies that each novice {and professional} astronomers yearn for,” Obuli explains.

The team will observe and document celestial objects. Says Keerthi from BAS, “Our group will observe and photograph astronomical objects and study nebulae and galaxies. In this digital age where photos are modified beyond recognition, we will attempt to observe the objects directly through our eyes and the telescope. This may not be possible from Coimbatore or Bengaluru or any other city/town”. Some members will be imaging the night sky using dedicated astrophotography gear. Vishwanath SK of BAS explains, “As astrophotographers, we want to capture the brilliant colors of the beautiful nebulae and galaxies and photograph the night sky along with the beautiful hills, monasteries and telescopes in Hanle.”

The Hanle Dark Sky Reserve will not only protect the darkness of the skies for astronomy research, but also promote astronomy tourism, and help in the socio-economic development of the local community in a sustainable fashion. “The HDSR is training the local community to act as tourist guides to the night sky, providing them with telescopes, as well as with material that will reduce light pollution towards the observatory,” says Obuli.

Since Hanle already is house to the Indian Astronomical Observatory, it was necessary to protect it for scientific functions, says Dorje Angchuk from the Indian Astronomical Observatory, the discipline station of IIA. “Also, the community around Hanle who were earlier nomads is diminishing now. So, we thought it would be a good initiative to make them realise the importance plus have some earning by way of astrotourism”.

If all goes nicely, we are able to quickly hope to have extra darkish sky reserves in the nation. Adds Obuli, “People begin appreciating wildlife and take care of it extra after they go to wildlife reserves. The night sky has at all times been a supply of inspiration for the human race, and this effort is of nice significance.”