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7 best places to see Milky Way in India

These seven destinations offer some of the clearest Milky Way in India views, from Ladakh’s high-altitude desert to the salt flats of Kutch
Discover seven breathtaking destinations for Milky Way in India
Best places to see Milky Way in India for a spectacular night under the stars
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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:

Sand dunes, mountain walls and distant peaks can all become part of a night photograph
Nubra Valley, Ladakh: Places around Hunder and Turtuk are particularly interesting for travellers who want to combine daytime exploration with night-sky viewing
On a clear, moonless night, the lake and mountains can form a dramatic foreground for milky way in India
Pangong Tso, Ladakh: At around 4,350 metres, the lake is surrounded by mountains and far removed from the bright skies of India's major cities
The Thar Desert around Jaisalmer offers wide, open skies and relatively low artificial light away from the city
Jaisalmer, Rajasthan: Sam Sand Dunes and Khuri are popular areas for desert camping, giving visitors the chance to stay outdoors after sunset
Instead of barren mountains or desert dunes, stargazers look up from coffee estates and forested Western Ghats landscapes
Coorg, 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 galaxy
The contrast is especially striking: white salt beneath your feet and a dark sky filled with stars overhead
Rann 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 horizon
Ancient monasteries, barren mountains and isolated villages become silhouettes beneath the stars
Spiti Valley, Himachal Pradesh: Villages such as Langza, Kibber and Komic are popular among stargazers because of their elevation and open horizons
The Hanle Dark Sky Reserve was declared in December 2022, with measures introduced to control artificial light
Hanle, Ladakh: Hanle stands at about 4,500 metres in eastern Ladakh and is home to the Indian Astronomical Observatory
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