Hanle Dark Sky Reserve

Hanle Dark Sky Reserve in Hanle village, Changthang region of Ladakh, is India's first Dark Sky Reserve, notified in December 2022. Spread around the Indian Astronomical Observatory at about 4,500 meters altitude, it protects the pristine night sky from light pollution. Located about 250 km southeast of Leh, the reserve offers exceptional stargazing and astrophotography opportunities in a high-altitude cold desert landscape near the Hanle Monastery.

Visitors can expect a high-altitude cold desert landscape at around 4,500 meters with clear, unpolluted night skies ideal for stargazing and astrophotography. The reserve encompasses Hanle village and surrounding hamlets with minimal artificial lighting. During the day, visitors can see the stark Changthang plateau, Hanle Monastery and the Indian Astronomical Observatory complex on Mt. Saraswati. At night, guided stargazing sessions with telescopes reveal the Milky Way, constellations and planets. Accommodation is in local homestays and guesthouses.

Notified in December 2022 by the Ladakh Administration as India's first Dark Sky Reserve in collaboration with the Indian Institute of Astrophysics to protect the night sky around the Indian Astronomical Observatory. The Indian Astronomical Observatory at Hanle was established in 2001 by the Indian Institute of Astrophysics and houses the 2-meter Himalayan Chandra Telescope, one of the highest observatories in the world.

Located in the Changthang region inhabited by the Changpa nomadic community and near the 17th-century Hanle Monastery, a prominent Drukpa Kagyu Buddhist monastery. The reserve promotes astro-tourism while preserving the traditional lifestyle and dark-sky heritage of the Hanle valley.