Vainu Bappu Observatory: Gazing at the Stars

In 1960, M.K Vainu Bappu became the director of the Kodaikanal Observatory. After a decade, he shifted it to Kavalur in Javadi Hills, because the site was better located.

In Kavalur, Bappu initiated efforts to set up a large indigenous telescope in India. The 2.3 meter telescope in the Kavalur Observatory, first put to use in 1986, was the result of this effort. Until 2016, this was the largest telescope of its kind in the country. Since Bappu didn't live to see this project to its end, the observatory was renamed Vainu Bappu Observatory.

The Observatory is located in a 100 acre forest in the Javadi Hills filled with deer, snakes and scorpions. It sits on a tower that is 725 metres above mean sea level. Researchers have the benefit of being closer to the equator and can study both the northern and the southern skies.

Visitors get to witness the wonders of the night sky through a 15cm telescope. January to May is the best time to do so. Prior permission is needed for these visits. A night spent at the observatory is a night well spent for avid star gazers.

Good to Know

Location: 78 km from the Sterling resort

Timings: 7 pm to 10 pm