New Plymouth Astronomical Society

23/09/2026

Did you see the meteor last night? ☄️

22/09/2026

It’s the spring equinox today! ☀️🌏

Today the Sun crosses the celestial equator, marking the astronomical beginning of spring in the Southern Hemisphere.

Although equinox comes from words meaning “equal night”, day and night aren’t exactly 12 hours each. Here in New Plymouth today, the Sun rises at 6:13 am and sets at 6:19 pm, giving us about 12 hours and 6 minutes of daylight.

From here, our days continue getting longer until the summer solstice in December.

22/09/2026

📢 Open night tonight 7.30pm-9pm!

The sky is meant to clear tonight 🤞

Admission prices:
Adult - $8
Child - $5
Family (2 adults, 2 children) - $20

This is the last week of our earlier opening time before moving to our summer hours 8.30pm-10pm.

We may slightly extend our hours for school holidays - keep an eye on our page for updates.

21/09/2026

Did you know that Venus has phases, just like the Moon? 🔭

Because Venus orbits closer to the Sun than Earth does, we see different amounts of its sunlit side as it moves around the Sun.

At the moment, Venus appears as a thin crescent, and we can see its phase through the telescope - despite Venus looking like an incredibly bright point of light to the naked eye.

If the skies cooperate tonight, come along to our Public Night from 7.30 pm and take a look at Venus!

17/09/2026

🌙 International Observe the Moon Night is this Saturday, 19th September!

International Observe the Moon Night is a worldwide celebration of lunar science, exploration and our connection with the Moon! 🌏

You don’t need a telescope to take part. Simply head outside after dark, look up and spend a little time observing the Moon. See if you can spot some of its darker plains, bright highlands and craters – binoculars can reveal even more detail! 🔭

Please note: The Observatory will not be open to the public this Saturday night, but we encourage everyone to get outside and enjoy the Moon from home.

If you manage to get a great photo, feel free to share it with us in the comments! 📸

Happy Moon watching!

30/08/2026

🔭 LIFT OFF TONIGHT: NASA’s Next Major Flagship Observatory Launches!
Set your alarms, clear your evening schedule, and get the kettle on! NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope is scheduled to launch tonight on a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket from Florida.
Here are the key details for New Zealand viewers:

* 📅 Date: Tonight – Sunday, 30 August 2026
* ⏰ Broadcast Starts: 10:20 p.m. NZST
* 🚀 Launch Time: 11:26 p.m. NZST
* 🛰️ Destination: Sun-Earth L2 (1.5 million km away)
* 📺 Where to Watch: Official [NASA Live Stream](https://plus.nasa.gov/)

# # Why Roman is a Game-Changer
Often described as a companion to Hubble and Webb, Roman brings something uniquely powerful to astrophysics: a massive field of view.

* Panoramic Power: Its Wide Field Instrument captures images 100 times larger than Hubble’s with the same sharp resolution. A survey that took Hubble 30 years can be done by Roman in about 11 days.

* Tackling Dark Energy: It will map hundreds of millions of galaxies across deep time to measure the cosmic expansion rate and investigate the nature of dark energy.

* Exoplanet Census: Astronomers expect Roman to detect around 100,000 exoplanets using gravitational microlensing, expanding our catalogue of distant solar systems like never before.

Drop your watch party links and excitement below, and let’s cross our fingers for green boards across the launch pad tonight! 🚀✨

NASA’s grand return to the lunar surface is underway to build an enduring presence for science, technology, and exploration.

12/08/2026

Astronomers May Have Found a Completely New Kind of Cosmic Object: the “Black Hole Star”

The James Webb Space Telescope has revealed something extraordinary — a strange, brilliant red object that astronomers now believe represents an entirely new class of cosmic phenomenon: a black hole star.

Unlike normal stars powered by nuclear fusion, this object appears to be a massive cloud of gas lit up by a central black hole. The black hole itself is estimated to be around 100,000 times the mass of the Sun, wrapped inside a hydrogen envelope roughly the size of our solar system. The result is an object so bright it outshines its entire host galaxy.

This discovery comes from the MoM (Mirage or Miracle) survey, which searches for the earliest galaxies in the universe. One red dot stood out due to its extreme brightness, unusual color, and lack of heavy elements. After four years of analysis and simulations, researchers concluded that only a black hole embedded in dense gas could explain what Webb was seeing.

If confirmed, this would be the first known example of such an object — named MoM‑BH‑1* — and it may help explain many other mysterious red dots appearing in JWST images.

Astronomers are calling it a major clue to understanding how black holes and early cosmic structures formed in the young universe. It’s a reminder that even now, with our most advanced telescope, the cosmos still has surprises waiting for us.

Popular Science article: https://www.popsci.com/science/black-hole-star-discovery/

Scientific Paper: https://arxiv.org/html/2503.16596v1

The never-before-seen objects are gargantuan, immensely bright, and ancient.

28/07/2026

Photo of the moon through the Pukaka telescope at the observatory tonight with my phone.

14/07/2026

We loved this TikTok from one of our recent visitors, which gives a great glimpse of what our public nights are all about. 🔭
Thanks for sharing! ✨

TikTok | Make Your Day

09/07/2026

✨ Matariki ✨

The observatory is open, volunteers ready to show you Matariki and Puanga in the morning sky.

Puanga and Matariki have both risen. We are waiting for Matariki to be visible with the naked eye but can be seen through our binoculars.

VIBE Container/Van is set up ready for your coffee fix ☕️🧤

🧣 If you are heading up, dress warm - the wind is quite cold.

🔭 Telescopes on the Moon and Saturn 🪐