Attractions Of Kodaiknal: Kodaikanal Solar Observatory

 Kodaikanal Solar Observatory

"Solar eclips 1999 5" by I, Luc Viatour. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons.

Short Overview:

The Kodaikanal Solar Observatory is a solar observatory owned and operated by Indian Institute of Astrophysics, this oldest world famous institution was built in 1899. It is located nearly 4 kms away from Kodaikanal and situated at the 

highest point in Kodai hills at 7700 ft.  The displays in the 

museum are mainly pictorial, supported by a few models. 

A live solar image and the Fraunhofer spectrum are also

presented

Long Overview:

wikimedia commons: Kodaiknal solar observatory

This solar observatory is located on the Palani Hills, at a distance of around 4 km from Kodaikanal town.  Established in the year 1899, Kodaikanal Solar Observatory, a part of Indian Institute of Astrophysics, is a very important observation center which conducts research on many important aspects related to the Sun. It has the privilege of being one of the oldest observatories of the world with lot of scientific data collected from decades. The observatory has a 20cm retractor which is very valuable in studying comets and occultation phenomenon (occultation occurs when an object passing through the view of observer hides another object).For folks keen on astronomy, this refractor lens is made available for viewing the wonders of night sky, with approval and permission of authorities. Another additional attraction of this solar observatory is the library which is very popular because of its vast collection of works on Astronomy, Solar terrestrial physics and Astrophysics. 

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