To celebrate International Dark Sky Week 2024, join us on Thursday April 4th from 7pm to 8.30pm, at the Kaikōura Museum for this free community evening.
Our two guest speakers, local astronomer Dr. Larry Field & professional astrophotographer Rachel Gillespie will inspire and motivate you to make the most of our amazing night skies whether through a telescope, camera lens or the naked eye.
Speaker: Dr. Larry Field
Talk: Astronomy of southern night skies: what can and cannot we see
Larry, one of our very knowledgeable local astronomers, will explore what is in our Southern night skies. From objects that are closed to home to those that are ever more distant. Learn about the beauty and awesomeness of celestial objects, aspects which our eyes can’t see, and why telescopes and cameras open new paths to these features.
Speaker: Rachel Gillespie
Talk: The Rising Milky Way Galaxy in April
Rachel’s talk will showcase some night images taken in Kaikōura as well as from other Dark Sky areas of the South Island at this time of year. She will discuss different places to go at certain times of year and important camera equipment you need to capture images and a quick guide on how to take night sky photography with considerations of gear and how to focus your lens for spectacular photos.
Rachel will be running a series of workshops in the field on professional astrophotography and night sky compositions with the first one on April 6th in Kaikoura. Check out – https://www.rachelgillespiephotography.com for information and about the new app called ASTROAPP.
