Astrotourism in India

Astrotourism is basically space tourism. While going out as an astronaut is a privilege for only a few, there are several observatories and planetaria in India where the beauty of space can be seen. There are also spaceflight sites and museums to enjoy India's space exploration adventure.

Understand
The history of astronomy in India is thousands of years old. Astronomers like Āryabhaṭa, Brahmagupta, Varāhamihira, Bhāskara I and Bhāskara II came from India. Indian astronomy significantly influenced Muslim astronomy, Chinese astronomy, European astronomy and others.

The Indian space programme began in the 1960s, which is known for performing incredible space missions at low cost, including Chandrayaan-1, Mangalyaan (Mars Orbiter Mission), Chandrayaan-2 and Chandrayaan-3. The rockets used in the programme include Satellite Launch Vehicle (SLV), Augmented Satellite Launch Vehicle (ASLV), Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV), Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) and Launch Vehicle Mark III (LVM3), of which PSLV, GSLV and LVM3 are in active used as of 2024. The rockets are launched from Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC SHAR) at Sriharikota, near Chennai.

Jantar Mantars
Jantar Mantars are five observatories built by Maharaja Jai Singh II in 1727–1734. Except the one in Ujjain, all other observatories are not in active use.