An astronomy and astrotourism course for astrotourism guides, amateur astronomers and the general public will take place in Kuaotunu in the Coromandel in September. The dates will be the afternoon of Friday September 18 to 5 pm on Sunday 20 September.
The course is being offered by the Aotearoa Astrotourism Academy (AAA), a non-profit organization founded in 2021 by Professor John Hearnshaw, Emeritus Professor of Astronomy at Canterbury University, and Nalayini Davies, who was until recently President of the Royal Astronomical Society of New Zealand. She is now the president of DarkSky International, based in Tucson Arizona.
The AAA website at https://aaanz.org gives more details and accepts on-line registrations.
AAA gives immersive courses over 2½ days for anyone who wants to be inspired by the beauty of the night sky and wants to learn more about the stars and how to observe them using binoculars or a small telescope.
Professor John Hearnshaw said that the course will offer an intensive programme of talks and practical workshops, including night-time observing, and will have seven instructors from some of New Zealand’s most knowledgeable astronomy and astrotourism experts. Practical advice on astrophotography and on Māori astronomy and Matariki will be part of the AAA course. The course is for anyone wanting to learn how to appreciate the beauty of the night sky and learn more about the stars. No previous astronomy knowledge was required.
Earth and Space Science teachers in New Zealand high schools, who want a refresher on astronomy, astrophysics and practical observing and astrophotography are also welcome.
The main course venue will be the Kuaotunu Community Hall, in Jack Black Rd, Kuaotunu. 3592, which is about 16 km north of Whitianga. Visits to the nearby Stargazers’ B&B and observatory, operated by local astronomer Alastair Brickell, will be made during the course.
Bruce Ngataierua, the Holt Planetarium director in Napier, will give a talk on Matariki and Te Arorangi Māori at the course. John Drummond will offer a talk and run a workshop on astrophotography. Nalayini Davies will offer a workshop on how to set up an astrotourism business. John Hearnshaw will give talks on coordinates and time in astronomy, the naming of stars and on stellar astrophysics. Alan Gilmore will present the main objects of interest in the southern sky and Gareth Davies will present images from his Unistellar EVscope and discuss the accreditation process of dark sky places with DarkSky International.
Alastair Brickell will be the local manager of the Kuaotunu AAA course.
More details and on-line registrations are at https://aaanz.org; enquiries to info@aaanz.org.
John Hearnshaw
Emeritus Professor of Astronomy, University of Canterbury
Figure: Astrophotography by Mark Gee – the Valley of the Stars
