16-05-2025
Commemorative stamp on Kodaikanal Solar Observatory released
A postal stamp was released on Friday at the Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIA) by the Department of Posts to commemorate the 125th anniversary of the Kodaikanal Solar Observatory.
Established on 1 April 1899, the Observatory has been a cradle of research in solar astrophysics ever since, with a number of path breaking discoveries to its credit.
The quasquicentennial was celebrated for a year, starting from 1 April 2024, and it is a fitting tribute to this scientific institution that a stamp has been issued in its honour.
A stamp commemorating this history and legacy of the Observatory was issued by A.S. Kiran Kumar, former ISRO Chairman and current chairperson of the Governing Council of IIA, and S. Rajendra Kumar, Chief Post Master General, Karnataka Circle.
IIA said that the stamp prominently features the iconic historic building of the Kodaikanal Solar Observatory, which has two domes. The dome on the right hosts the 6-inch telescope which was installed at the Madras Observatory as early as 1850, remodelled in 1898, and installed at Kodaikanal in 1900 by the then Director, Michie Smith.
The dome on the left hosts the 8-inch telescope that was installed at the Madras Observatory in 1866, and brought to Kodaikanal in 1930. This telescope is now used for public outreach for visitors.
'The stamp also features an H-alpha image of the Sun taken at the Kodaikanal Solar Observatory on 6 May 2024, as well as the IIA logo. In addition, a colourful inset in the stamp is the famous 'Butterfly Diagram', which is a plot of the solar latitude of sunspots versus year. This plot was generated using data taken from the Observatory between 1904 and 2020,' IIA said.
The stamp will soon be available for purchase by stamp collector enthusiasts at the various Philately Bureaus across Karnataka.
