* Astronomy

Beyond space and time

On the eve of a swirling storm, the rain-drenched campus of the Regional Meteorological Centre (RMC) in Nungambakkam is dripping green. A signboard points to its prized possession, a 15-foot long granite pillar, weighing 10 tonnes and surrounded by smaller structures. Erected in 1792, these are the only remains of India's first modern public observatory, the Madras Observatory, started by the British East India Company in 1786.
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