Best places to see Milky Way in India for a spectacular night under the stars
The Milky Way is the galaxy that holds the Earth, Sun and the Solar System. The Milky Way is a barred spiral galaxy, which is 100,000 light-years in diameter. Looking from Earth, the Milky Way is seen as a white or pale cloud because our point of view is within the galaxy, and we have to look through the disk of the galaxy to see its centre. The number of stars in the Milky Way galaxy has been estimated by NASA to range between 100 and 400 billion. The Solar System is located halfway between the centre of the galaxy and one of the spiral arms of the Milky Way.
Here are 7 places to spot the Milky Way in India:
Nubra Valley, Ladakh: Places around Hunder and Turtuk are particularly interesting for travellers who want to combine daytime exploration with night-sky viewingPangong Tso, Ladakh: At around 4,350 metres, the lake is surrounded by mountains and far removed from the bright skies of India's major citiesJaisalmer, Rajasthan: Sam Sand Dunes and Khuri are popular areas for desert camping, giving visitors the chance to stay outdoors after sunsetCoorg, Karnataka: Southern Coorg, particularly around Theralu, has been noted for Class 2 skies on the Bortle scale, with views of the Milky Way and Andromeda galaxyRann of Kutch, Gujarat: The vast salt desert of the Rann of Kutch creates an unusual foreground for night-sky viewing. Its flat terrain gives stargazers a broad horizonSpiti Valley, Himachal Pradesh: Villages such as Langza, Kibber and Komic are popular among stargazers because of their elevation and open horizonsHanle, Ladakh: Hanle stands at about 4,500 metres in eastern Ladakh and is home to the Indian Astronomical Observatory