Talacauvery is South India’s top ‘star party’ destination

Last Updated06/01/2023

Talacauvery in the Kodagu district of Karnataka, which is considered the place of origin of the Cauvery River, has emerged as South India’s Hanle, as astronomers are seen hosting “star parties” in the region.

Hanle, which is situated in Ladakh, is famous for its pristine skies and minimal light pollution.
The Department of Science & Technology (DST) under the Ministry of Science & Technology, announced the establishment of India’s first Dark Sky Reserve at Hanle.

Dark Sky Reserves are designations given to regions that have policies in place to ensure that a tract of land or region has minimal artificial light interference.
In southern parts of India, most dark sky locations are located amidst the Western Ghats and Talacauvery is said to be the most ideal location to gaze at the sky and have a star party due to less light pollution.
Astronomers use the Bortle scale to measure the brightness of the night sky in a location that is a nine-level numerical scale.
The lower the numerical scale the better would be the dark sky location.
Example: Hanle would qualify as a Bortle one sky, Talacauvery as Bortle two, and Bengaluru as Bortle nine.