In Aotearoa, we have a special connection to the stars, and there are plenty of ways to take in the skies. Photo / Getty Images
In Aotearoa, we have a special connection to the stars, and there are plenty of ways to take in the skies. Photo / Getty Images
From outdoor tours to observatories, Ewan McDonald explores some of the ways to marvel at the skies
Crisp, clear… and d-d-d-darned chilly. Out here on an Otago Peninsula beach the fur seals are probably shivering and the penguins more than a little blue. Kylie Ruwhiu-Karawana, her brother-in-law James Karawana and I are huddled under blankets in camp-chairs, looking up at dark, blue, starry heavens.
Their family runs the Southern Skies stargazing tour, sharing stories and waiata of how Māori viewed the night sky, 180-degrees differently from European astronomers. They saw seven bright stars of Orion as a giant hunter, a line of three stars his belt, sword hanging below; Kylie tells how Māori saw the constellation as a pot, a kete, or a perch where birds landed to feed.
Aotearoa has a special relationship with the stars in its skies. That's how our first people found the place; today, we can see 3000 stars while 80 per cent of the world has trouble spotting any. Our flag features the Southern Cross and (according to Google) we're the only nation to create a public holiday for a cluster of stars.
Adrift Tongariro's private guided tour lets walkers experience crossing under the night stars and breaking morning light. Photo / supplied
We might go further. Concerned about increasing light pollution and its proven effects on human health and nocturnal wildlife, the country may become the world's first "dark sky nation". In Hoopers Inlet right now, one of us is just praying Kylie will pour that hot kawakawa tea from the Thermos and pass those scones.
As Matariki dawns, Kiwis have plenty of opportunities to enjoy the heavens above. Stars of the show are Aotea Great Barrier and Rakiura Stewart islands, two of the world's 15 Dark Sky Sanctuaries; and Aoraki Mackenzie, second-largest of 20 Dark Sky Reserves. Wai-iti in Tasman is a Dark Sky Park; Martinborough and Naseby are seeking accreditation.
The famous jetty at Lake Rotoiti, Nelson Lakes, is a great spot for watching the night sky. Photo / Getty Images
Great Barrier is a few degrees warmer than other Matariki locations, where the women of Good Heavens offer cosy and light-hearted experiences with "moon chairs", hot drinks and blankets for small groups. Suitable for all ages, a guide uses a laser pointer to identify constellations, everyone has binoculars to gaze at middle-distance objects and an 8-inch telescope allows a closer view of faraway stars and planets.
A Unihedron Sky Quality Meter reading of 16 indicates a light-polluted city and 21 a very dark sky. Stewart Island's readings have ranged between 21.51-21.93 since 2017. And it's really dark from 7pm-6.30am in winter, when Twinkle Dark Sky Tours are one of several local operators helping you see everything from craters on the Moon to the centre of the galaxy.
At 4367sq km, Aoraki Mackenzie International Dark Sky Reserve is a master of the universe, covering Aoraki Mt Cook National Park and the Mackenzie Basin, the townships of Tekapo, Twizel and Mt Cook. This rugged, isolated land, dominated by large sheep stations for more than a century, has some of the world's clearest, most spectacular night skies.
Scientifically, it's important because it protects the University of Canterbury's astronomical research at Mt John Observatory. A world leader in astro-tourism, there's no end of inventive ideas.
The MOA Telescope at Mount John Observatory, Tekapo, operated by the University of Canterbury. Photo / Getty Images
Alpha CruX provides private astronomy tours and astrophotography lessons throughout the region; Big Sky Stargazing's tour uses the naked eye, astro-binoculars and state-of-the-art telescopes, delivered from an outdoor viewing platform or, if the weather's unkind, New Zealand's first 360-degree digital Dome Planetarium at the Sir Edmund Hillary Centre in Mt Cook Village. Here, science meets entertainment. Families "leave Earth, fly to the edge of our galaxy and far beyond to the reaches of our known universe" and get home in time for supper.
Chameleon Stargazing is a more budget and family-friendly tour in a near-zero light pollution location in Tekapo (hot chocolate, a fire bowl with roasted marshmallows).
Ngāi Tahu Tourism's Dark Sky Project is the best-known experience, its observatory tours boosted with explanations of Māori navigation, planting, significance and observations.
It's not often written in the stars but Wai-iti Domain was and is New Zealand's first Dark Sky Park, Tasman District Council boldly protecting 153ha near the Tunnicliff Forest in 2020 to become an incredible stargazing site.
Just an hour north of Wellington, Wairarapa wants to become the world's largest and most accessible dark sky destination. Here you'll find Stonehenge Aotearoa, built on the same scale as some other place on Salisbury Plain in England.
It's not a folly. Open-air, hands-on, Stonehenge Aotearoa is a modern observatory connecting people with their sky and the cycles of nature - solstices, equinoxes, Matariki, incorporating ancient Egyptian, Babylonian and Indus Valley astronomy, Polynesian navigation, Celtic and Māori lore.
Under the Stars runs bespoke events for schools or house parties; every weekend, Star Safari opens the universe with powerful telescopes, planetarium tours and space science communicators. It's a social enterprise from Milky-Way.Kiwi, an online platform for space and astronomy news with a New Zealand flavour.
Central Otago's Naseby village has been measuring its night skies and is bidding to become an official night sky community – having navigated a way around the council's local planning rules. Having a resident astrophysicist helps; he's Paul Bishop, who hosts Naseby Night Sky Tours.
You don't have to head for the hills to go stargazing, even in Tāmaki Makaurau. The sky above our biggest city might be dimmed by light pollution but Auckland has two great vantage points.
The Stardome in Cornwall Park is an observatory and planetarium that puts on family shows tailor-made for kids; Shakespear Regional Park, 40 minutes north of the city and sheltering endangered native wildlife, stays open until 7pm in winter. Head there after sunset to see stars glisten above the distant office towers.
Hamilton's Astronomical Society will celebrate Matariki with events at its observatory - two opportunities to see the night sky at dawn (5.30am) on 24 and 25 June, and a public talk on 24 June (7.30pm).
Wellington boasts the Space Place, housed in the former, historic Carter Observatory on the edge of the city's excellent botanic garden. Step out of the cable car and into an interactive universe of planets, galaxies, stars and constellations.
Canterbury Astronomical Society offers open nights and tours of its well-equipped observatory at West Melton, 45 minutes south of Christchurch, while Akaroa Stargazing has access to the clear skies above Banks Peninsula.
Tūhura at Otago Museum is the country's biggest science centre, housing almost 50 hands-on interactives guaranteed to keep the kids or grandkids entertained. Reckoned to be the world's only bicultural science centre, telling the Ngāi Tahu creation story and integrating art with science, its planetarium presents a boggling selection of shows. More scientifically inclined adults might opt for Dunedin Astronomical Society's Beverley Begg Observatory.
In Coromandel, Stargazers Lodge guests and visitors can book a night-sky tour of the observatory and planetarium in the light pollution-free zone overlooking Kuaotunu. Its solar-powered, rotating-dome observatory houses a research-grade set-up, perfect for the astro-curious and photographers.
The observatory at Stargazers Lodge, Coromandel, is the perfect setting for the astro-curious. Photo / supplied
New Plymouth Observatory, atop Marsland Hill above the CBD, plans a special event for Matariki; other vantage points are 156m Paritutu Rock and Mt Moturoa Domain in the city or the summit of Taranaki Maunga, as close to the stars as possible.
At Lake Rotoiti in Nelson Lakes National Park, sit on the edge of the famous jetty and enjoy the spectacular night sky glistening off the water.
Fair to stay the West Coast's skies are stunning on a clear night. Paparoa Nature Tours in Punakaiki take guests to explore the Milky Way and southern constellations through a computerised 260mm telescope while being serenaded by great spotted kiwi, morepork or weka from nearby rainforest.
A Starry Nights Queenstown photography tour with astro-photographer Simon Williams includes a trip around spectacular Whakatipu Basin locations in a Land Rover, a professionally curated photo session and tips on shooting stars. Sorry, but you should probably have seen that one coming.
Gourmet sailing: Book a couple of stargazing nights on a private yacht charter around Nelson, Abel Tasman National Park and Golden Bay.
Drop in, drop out: Pūkaki Wine Cellar and Observatory at Mount Cook Lakeside Retreat welcomes guests for a glass of wine or tot of whisky from their curated cellar; then it's into the adjoining observatory, equipped with a retractable roof and telescope, to explore the southern stars.
Sunrise hike, Tongariro Alpine Crossing: Adrift Tongariro's private guided tour is a spectacular way to experience the crossing under the night stars and breaking morning light. Stand beneath the Milky Way with shooting stars streaming down pre-dawn skies, breakfast al fresco at the Red Crater.
Sunrise tours, Ātea a Rangi, Hawke's Bay: At this collaboration between Ātea Trust and the regional council to ensure the art of Whakatere waka (traditional navigation) lives on, sunrise tours share the story of the star compass that guided navigators across the Pacific.
Stellar relaxation: The first hour of Tekapo Star Gazing's guided indoor and/or outdoor tour introduces you to amazing night skies; then lie on a floating hammock in a 37.5C hot pool and soak in the stars.
