First Astro Party in Benital, Uttarakhand: Participant said – Seeing the sky from a height of 8200 feet, it seemed as if it had risen again, where are such scenes seen in cities

A special setup was put in place to show the participants amazing views of the sky.

In cities, it is impossible to see many stars at once because there is so much pollution that even the sky is not visible. Here the atmosphere and the sky was very clear, it seemed that someone had covered us with a sheet full of moon and stars. Coming here felt that he had risen again. This is to say of Shreya Sonali, who came to attend the first astro party held in Benital, Uttarakhand. Sonali says, ‘The party did a lot, but it was completely different. We stayed here for two days. It seemed that time was running out. Let’s just stare at the moon and twinkling stars.

For the first time in the country, when the participants saw the moon and stars from a height of about 8200 feet in the astro party i.e. the party among the moon-stars, they felt that they had come to another world. Sonali says, ‘Such events are important, because they give a lot of information about celestial events. Ramesh Mumakshu, who came from Delhi, said, ‘These things have been lost in the cities. Coming here, it seemed that there was a revival. After gathering information about the moon and stars for two nights, during the day we also went to the nearby village school.

The view was amazing, knowing about the whole process from making rockets to launching there. Watching Jupiter through a telescope was an unforgettable experience. Till now such scenes were seen only on TV, but they were stunned when they saw it live here. The event was organized by the Government of Uttarakhand, Chamoli Administration and Starscapes. Ramshish Ray of the organization told that this is the first astro park in the country. This initiative was taken to promote astro tourism. Eight experts were present at the site overnight to help the tourists. There was no fee for admission. Now in April next year, Astro will organize the party.

Stargazing and star hunting experience
The participants said that the experience of experiencing the magic of the night sky at a beautiful and wonderful place like Benital was spectacular. Had many experiences with stargazing, star hunting, sky observation, astrophotography. Activities like trekking, bird watching, cycling gave a life changing experience.