Ocean to Mountains. Lakes and Stars.

 
The morning started at the Ocean, the Moeraki boulders.  A thee hour drive from Oamaru, via Duntroon, past the dams, and onward to Tekapo, and the Southern Alps.  As we were making so many stops, it took all day! The landscapes were vast, the hills dominant, and the trees yellow. Salmon farms use the hydro canals. 

The Southern Alps near Twizel.

Lake Pukaki.  A lake fed from the Tasman glacier, Hooker glacier, and Mueller glacier.  The blue is vivid.

Late in the afternoon we arrived at Tekapo.  This is the largest Dark Sky reserve in the Southern Hemisphere.  Tonight we get to see the stars up close at the observatory - if it is not cloudy!

View from our motel room, the Brashear telescope lives here.

As we were waiting for the sun to set, a native falcon caught her prey along the lake front

Fabulous cloud formations. Our star adventure at Mt John Observatory started after sunset. Cloud was expected and gale force winds. 

The Brashear telescope is one one the world's most famous victorian Telescopes. The 18-inch refractor was created in 1894 by Pennsylvanian optician, John Brasher. From 1896 to 1954 the Brashear was based at the University of Pennsylvania, USA.

The Brashear telescope was hugely important in the history of astronomy. During Percival Lowell''s studies of Mars, he used the telescope to see sunlight reflected off the Martian polar icecaps. The Brashear Telescope was also used by Walter Leight in his early examination of Saturn, where Leight first observed sub-divisions in Saturn's rings.

In 1963, the University of Pennsylvania began a partnership with the University of Canterbury to establish  a Southern Hemisphere astronomy programme at Mt John in Tekapo. The Brashear Telescope was to be the centrepiece of the new Observatory.  

At 6.15 pm, we checked in at the Tekapo Observatory Night Summit Experience for the 6.45pm booking.  This is at the Customer service Counter at Dark Sky Project, Tekapo lake front. 

Needed to wear:

· Flat, warm, and comfortable footwear suitable for walking on uneven terrain.

· Windproof jackets, thermals, and warm pants.

· Hats and gloves

The bus ride up Mt John in the dark was an experience. The lights were off. At the observatory we viewed the stunning surrounds, pristine night sky, and used sophisticated viewing technologies of the University of Canterbury MT John Observatory, and discovered the Southern Night Sky. We learnt how to navigate by the Southern Cross and clapping our hands. I learnt the names of many constellations. 

Fortunately, the clouds stayed away until we had finished looking through the telescopes, but the wind picked up. They supplied extra warm jackets for us to wear.

Afterwards, the urchins and I walked over to the Church of the Good Shepard, and looked at the stars again.