Udaipur Solar Observatory

Udaipur Solar Observatory occupies its own island in Fateh Sagar Lake, Rajasthan, a setting chosen specifically to sharpen its view of the Sun.

About Udaipur Solar Observatory

Built in 1976 on the model of the Solar Observatory at Big Bear Lake, California, the observatory has been run by the Physical Research Laboratory in Ahmedabad, under India's Department of Space, since 1981.

Telescopes & research

Its island setting reduces the air turbulence that ground heating from sunlight normally causes, improving image quality to an average of 1-2 arc seconds and making Udaipur, by reputation, the best solar observing site in Asia. Instruments include the 50-centimetre Multi-Application Solar Telescope (MAST) and a Global Oscillation Network Group (GONG) telescope, supporting research into solar magnetic fields, velocity and spectral observations, flares, mass ejections and space weather.

Location & getting there

The observatory sits on an island within Fateh Sagar Lake in Udaipur, Rajasthan, in western India.

Visiting Udaipur Solar Observatory

Udaipur Solar Observatory is a restricted research site with no public entry; staff personnel only. Visitors can still enjoy views of Fateh Sagar Lake itself from the Udaipur shoreline.

See your named star from here

Even a facility dedicated entirely to studying the Sun underlines how precisely astronomers can track a single point in the sky. If you've named a star of your own, browse the catalogue to find its coordinates.