The Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIA) is an autonomous research institute headquartered in Bengaluru. It is wholly funded by the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India, and conducts research primarily in astronomy, astrophysics and related fields.
IIA operates a network of laboratories and observatories across India. These include the Kodaikanal Solar Observatory at Kodaikanal, the Vainu Bappu Observatory at Kavalur, the Gauribidanur Radio Observatory at Gauribidanur, the Indian Astronomical Observatory at Hanle, and a facility at Hosakote. The geographic spread of these stations supports observations across solar, optical and radio wavelengths.
The institute contributed to Astrosat, India's first dedicated multi-wavelength space observatory, which was developed as a collaborative effort involving several research institutions in India. IIA led the development of the Ultra-Violet Imaging Telescope (UVIT), one of the payloads on Astrosat.