Hanle (village)

Hanle (also spelt Anle) is a large historic village in the Indian union territory of Ladakh. The revenue village of Hanle comprises six hamlets — Bhok, Dhado, Punguk, Khuldo, Naga and Tibetan Refugee habitation —within 1073 sq km Changthang Wildlife Sanctuary in Changthang plateau. It is the site of the 17th-century Hanle Monastery (gompa) of the Drukpa Kagyu branch of Tibetan Buddhism. Hanle is located in the Hanle River valley on an old branch of the ancient Ladakh–Tibet trade route. Hanle is the home of Hanle observatory (ISO - Indian Astronomical Observatory), the tenth (see List of highest astronomical observatories) highest optical telescope in the world in India's first dark-sky preserve.