Images show wonders of space

LEGENDS: The Matariki star cluster. PHOTO/STEPHEN CHADWICK

The beauty of the New Zealand night sky will be on show at the Carterton Events Centre this month.

On January 15, astrophotographer Stephen Chadwick will present A Journey through the Cosmos, a series of photographs and videos accompanied by live music, as an introduction to his ongoing exhibition being held at the events centre. The exhibition features a number of deep space photos which were taken from Chadwick's backyard. Each photo will include a brief description of the science behind the astronomical phenomenon.

Chadwick, who lives at Himatangi Beach, said he became fascinated by the night sky after moving to New Zealand in 2007.

"I moved to New Zealand, and moved to the country and saw the universe for the first time, having moved from light-polluted England. It blew me away seeing the night sky on a dark night."

Chadwick will be the sole exhibitor for the first two weeks and will be joined by Stephen Voss, an astrophotographer from Southland, for the second half of the exhibition.

Chadwick is the co-author of Imaging the Southern Sky, the first astrophotography guidebook concentrating on the southern sky.

"I'm interested in the science and the aesthetics ... objects like nebula and galaxies are beautiful but they are astronomically interesting, so the two together are appealing."

The photographs are taken with the aid of a small telescope attached to a special moveable mount.

Those interested in learning more about the art of processing astrophotos can also catch Chadwick at Stardate 2015 at Stonehenge Aotearoa, a gathering for people who are interested in observing the stars, on January 24.

The exhibition at the Carterton Events Centre opens at 7.30pm on January 15 and runs until February 9.