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DTSTART;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20260713T200000
DTEND;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20260713T210000
DTSTAMP:20260711T224959Z
CREATED:20260711T224959Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260711T224959Z
UID:3156-1783972800-1783976400@www.astronomy.org.nz
SUMMARY:Monthly Meeting July - Pluto Isn’t a Planet
DESCRIPTION:In 2006\, the International Astronomical Union adopted a definition of a planet that demoted Pluto to just one of what is likely hundreds of dwarf planets in our Solar System. Exploring the remote Kuiper Belt\, this lecture challenges us to think about what kinds of scientific questions are worth our attention\, what it means to name something – and why Pluto is worth caring about anyway. \nThis lecture was recorded by Chris Lintott on the 3rd of June 2026 \nProfessor Chris Lintott is a Professor of Astrophysics at the University of Oxford\, and a Research Fellow at New College. \nHaving been educated at Magdalene College\, Cambridge and University College London\, his research now ranges from understanding how galaxies form and evolve\, to using machine learning to find the most unusual things in the Universe\, to predicting the properties of visiting interstellar asteroids. He was the founder of the Zooniverse citizen science platform\, which provides opportunities for more than two million online volunteers to contribute to scientific research\, and which was the topic of his first book\, ‘The Crowd and the Cosmos’. His latest book is ‘Our Accidental Universe’. \nProfessor Lintott is best known for presenting the BBC’s long-running Sky at Night program\, and as an accomplished lecturer. Away from work\, he cooks\, suffers through being a fan of Torquay United and Somerset cricket\, and spends time with a rescued lurcher\, Mr Max. He can often be found at the helm of Oxford’s science comedy night\, ‘Huh\, That’s Funny’.
URL:https://www.astronomy.org.nz/event/monthly-meeting-july-pluto-isnt-a-planet/
LOCATION:Stardome Observatory & Planetarium\, 670 Manukau Road\, Epsom\, Auckland\, 1345
CATEGORIES:AAS Meetings,Monthly Meeting
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20260720T200000
DTEND;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20260720T210000
DTSTAMP:20260718T112328Z
CREATED:20260718T112328Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260718T112328Z
UID:3158-1784577600-1784581200@www.astronomy.org.nz
SUMMARY:Practical Astronomy July - Equatorial Mounts: Why We Use Them and How They Work
DESCRIPTION:Why does a telescope need an equatorial mount\, and what makes it different from simpler fixed or altitude–azimuth designs? This beginner-friendly talk starts with the basic problem of following objects across the night sky\, then uses practical examples and simulations to explain tracking\, field rotation and the deceptively simple idea behind an equatorial mount. \nCurator of Instruments\, Steve Hennerley\, follows the development of telescope mounts from early transit instruments and seventeenth-century helioscopes through to modern computer-controlled equipment. He then moves into the practicalities of setting up an equatorial mount in the Southern Hemisphere\, including finding true south\, levelling the mount\, polar scopes\, drift alignment and electronic polar-alignment tools. \nNo previous knowledge is assumed\, making this an accessible introduction for visual observers and anyone beginning to explore astrophotography.
URL:https://www.astronomy.org.nz/event/practical-astronomy-july-equatorial-mounts-why-we-use-them-and-how-they-work/
LOCATION:Stardome Observatory & Planetarium\, 670 Manukau Road\, Epsom\, Auckland\, 1345
CATEGORIES:AAS Meetings,Practical Astronomy
ORGANIZER;CN="Steve Hennerley":MAILTO:steve.hennerley@gmail.com
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20260727T200000
DTEND;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20260727T210000
DTSTAMP:20260725T094232Z
CREATED:20260725T094232Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260725T094232Z
UID:3167-1785182400-1785186000@www.astronomy.org.nz
SUMMARY:Film Night July - Harmony of the Worlds
DESCRIPTION:We continue our revisiting of The Cosmos Series. \n  \nEpisode 3: \nSubject: History of astronomy from astrology to Kepler’s laws; Ptolemy\, Copernicus\, Brahe\, Galileo; scientific method triumph. 45 Years Later: \nKepler Space Telescope (2009–2018) discovered thousands of exoplanets using transit method\, validating Kepler’s laws on a galactic scale.\nGaia mission (2013–) mapped precise positions and motions of >1 billion stars\, refining galactic structure.\nGeneral relativity tests passed with ever-higher precision (e.g.\, gravitational waves\, LIGO 2015).
URL:https://www.astronomy.org.nz/event/film-night-july-harmony-of-the-worlds/
LOCATION:Stardome Observatory & Planetarium\, 670 Manukau Road\, Epsom\, Auckland\, 1345
CATEGORIES:AAS Meetings,Film Night
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20260803T200000
DTEND;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20260803T210000
DTSTAMP:20260705T064734Z
CREATED:20260705T064644Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260705T064734Z
UID:3152-1785787200-1785790800@www.astronomy.org.nz
SUMMARY:Introduction to Astronomy August 2026
DESCRIPTION:Titan: Earth’s Frozen Twin\nGuest speaker: Jonathan Park \nIn many ways\, Saturn’s moon Titan looks uncannily familiar: dunes like those in Earth’s deserts\, mountains\, branching river channels\, rain\, lakes\, and seas. But here\, methane takes the place of water\, and frozen water stands in for solid rock. Beneath Titan’s thick orange haze lies a world near minus 180 °C\, where chemistry\, climate\, and the possibility of life follow entirely different rules. This presentation explores how we get there\, what we find\, and what NASA’s Dragonfly mission hopes to discover when it arrives in the 2030s.
URL:https://www.astronomy.org.nz/event/introduction-to-astronomy-august-2026/
LOCATION:Stardome Observatory\, 670 Manukau Rd\, Epsom\, Auckland\, 1345\, New Zealand
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20260810T190000
DTEND;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20260810T200000
DTSTAMP:20260809T123011Z
CREATED:20260809T123011Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260809T123011Z
UID:3183-1786388400-1786392000@www.astronomy.org.nz
SUMMARY:Emerging Astronomers - Is There Life on Venus?
DESCRIPTION:We’ve changed our minds about that several times. In the 1950s we pictured a warm jungle world. Then multiple spacecraft found a surface at ~400°C that destroyed every lander we sent. Now the question has reopened\, this time about Venus’s clouds\, and about a chemical signal nobody can explain. \nTim Sol is a Year 11 student at Wentworth Computer Science College\, Auckland\, and the new leader of the AAS Junior sessions\, having volunteered with the Society through 2026’s Matariki solar-telescope outreach. He is a 2025 “15@15 Youth Building Democracy” winner and placed 3rd in  the 2025 “Mars 2040” Space Competition (Arts & Business College of London). He founded and led his previous school’s Space Club and co-runs Open Process (a YouTube channel about engineering\, robotics\, and AI).
URL:https://www.astronomy.org.nz/event/emerging-astronomers-is-there-life-on-venus/
LOCATION:Stardome Observatory & Planetarium\, 670 Manukau Road\, Epsom\, Auckland\, 1345
CATEGORIES:Young Astronomers
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20260810T200000
DTEND;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20260810T210000
DTSTAMP:20260809T010339Z
CREATED:20260809T010339Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260809T010339Z
UID:3172-1786392000-1786395600@www.astronomy.org.nz
SUMMARY:Monthly Meeting August - Shining a Light on Dark Matter
DESCRIPTION:Carnegie Science Observatories postdoc Andrew Robertson focuses on one of the key mysteries in contemporary astronomy: the nature of dark matter. We know that this mysterious form of matter makes up about 85 percent of the mass in the universe\, but astronomers still don’t know exactly what it is. Drawing on his experience as a former postdoc at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory\, Robertson will explain how astronomers came to believe that dark matter exists\, and how some gargantuan collisions of galaxy clusters—particularly the famous “Bullet Cluster”—provide some of the strongest supporting evidence for its existence. He’ll demonstrate how these extreme cosmic collisions can be used to probe the fundamental properties of dark matter itself. Dr. Andrew Robertson – Postdoctoral Fellow\, Carnegie Science Observatories. \nThis is a rebroadcast of a Carnegie Science Lecture \n 
URL:https://www.astronomy.org.nz/event/monthly-meeting-august-shining-a-light-on-dark-matter/
LOCATION:Stardome Observatory & Planetarium\, 670 Manukau Road\, Epsom\, Auckland\, 1345
CATEGORIES:AAS Meetings,Monthly Meeting
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20260817T200000
DTEND;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20260817T210000
DTSTAMP:20260809T013717Z
CREATED:20260809T013717Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260809T013717Z
UID:3174-1786996800-1787000400@www.astronomy.org.nz
SUMMARY:Practical Astronomy August - An overview of Astronomy software for Amateurs.
DESCRIPTION:This month will be an overview of Astronomy software for amateurs\, particularly Sky Charting software for desktop and mobile.  We will also cover some available options for telescope mount control\, image capture and processing.  
URL:https://www.astronomy.org.nz/event/practical-astronomy-august-an-overview-of-astronomy-software-for-amateurs/
LOCATION:Stardome Observatory & Planetarium\, 670 Manukau Road\, Epsom\, Auckland\, 1345
CATEGORIES:AAS Meetings,Practical Astronomy
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20260824T200000
DTEND;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20260824T210000
DTSTAMP:20260809T014342Z
CREATED:20260809T014342Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260809T014342Z
UID:3179-1787601600-1787605200@www.astronomy.org.nz
SUMMARY:Film Night August - The Cosmos revisited 45 Years later - Heaven and Hell
DESCRIPTION:Episode 4: Heaven and Hell\nSubject: Comets\, asteroids\, and impacts (Tunguska\, Venus greenhouse); planetary evolution and catastrophes. 45 Years Later: \n\nChicxulub crater confirmed as dinosaur extinction cause (1980s–1990s); multiple impact threats mapped (NEOWISE\, etc.).\nVenus: confirmed runaway greenhouse; no life but extreme lessons for Earth climate.\nJupiter’s Shoemaker-Levy 9 impact (1994) observed live; DART mission (2022) demonstrated asteroid deflection technology.
URL:https://www.astronomy.org.nz/event/film-night-august-the-cosmos-revisited-45-years-later-heaven-and-hell/
LOCATION:Stardome Observatory & Planetarium\, 670 Manukau Road\, Epsom\, Auckland\, 1345
CATEGORIES:AAS Meetings,Film Night
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20260907T200000
DTEND;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20260907T210000
DTSTAMP:20260723T015939Z
CREATED:20260723T015939Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260723T015939Z
UID:3165-1788811200-1788814800@www.astronomy.org.nz
SUMMARY:Introduction to Astronomy September 2026
DESCRIPTION:Large Scale Structure of the Universe\nThis evening\, Chris Benton will discuss how the Universe is structured on large scales. Starting with our location in the Milky Way\, we move out through the Local Group into the Virgo and Laniakea Superclusters of galaxies and beyond to reveal the large-scale structures of the Universe\, as shown in a video travelling through space made from Sloan Digital Sky Survey data on observed galaxy positions and distances. Come and learn about the most recently discovered structures involving observations of Gamma Ray Bursts and distant quasars\, and how they fit in with what we know about the cosmos on grand scales.
URL:https://www.astronomy.org.nz/event/introduction-to-astronomy-september-2026/
LOCATION:Stardome Observatory\, 670 Manukau Rd\, Epsom\, Auckland\, 1345\, New Zealand
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20260914T190000
DTEND;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20260914T195000
DTSTAMP:20260823T015143Z
CREATED:20260823T015143Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260823T015143Z
UID:3199-1789412400-1789415400@www.astronomy.org.nz
SUMMARY:Emerging Astronomers September - What Are Saturn's Rings\, Really
DESCRIPTION:Everyone knows Saturn has rings — but what are they made of\, where did they come from\, and how long will they last? Junior sessions continue on Monday 14 September. We’ll go past the famous picture to the real thing: rings sculpted by tiny moons\, a world with rivers and rain where you could strap on wings and fly\, and another firing water into space from a hidden ocean that might hold life. Saturn is at its best in our sky right now\, so everyone leaves with something to go and look at.
URL:https://www.astronomy.org.nz/event/emerging-astronomers-september-what-are-saturns-rings-really/
LOCATION:Stardome Observatory & Planetarium\, 670 Manukau Road\, Epsom\, Auckland\, 1345
CATEGORIES:Young Astronomers
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20260914T200000
DTEND;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20260914T210000
DTSTAMP:20260913T003222Z
CREATED:20260913T003222Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260913T003222Z
UID:3206-1789416000-1789419600@www.astronomy.org.nz
SUMMARY:Monthly Meeting September - The hunt for oceans on icy moons
DESCRIPTION:Could there be oceans (and even life) hiding beneath the icy surfaces of the moons of Jupiter and Saturn? \nThis month we will screen a rebroadcast of a Royal Institution Lecture. \nFor most of the history of planetary science\, the search for habitable worlds focused on planets close to the Sun\, where surface water can stay liquid. But data from NASA’s Cassini spacecraft at Saturn and the Galileo spacecraft at Jupiter has overturned that assumption\, revealing that several icy moons may be hiding vast oceans of liquid water beneath their frozen crusts. \nIn this Discourse\, Michele Dougherty — the first female Astronomer Royal — takes us through the Cassini mission’s most extraordinary discovery: a plume of water vapour erupting from the south pole of Saturn’s tiny moon Enceladus\, and what it revealed about the possibility of life beyond Earth. She then looks ahead to ESA’s JUICE mission\, launched in 2023\, which is now on its way to spend years studying Jupiter’s giant moons Ganymede\, Callisto and Europa — all suspected to hide oceans of their own. \nAbout the speaker:\nMichele Dougherty is Professor of Space Physics at Imperial College London. In 2025 she was named Astronomer Royal — the first woman to hold the position since it was created in 1675. Her research centres on planetary magnetospheres and atmospheric composition. She is a Principal Investigator on NASA’s Cassini mission at Saturn and on ESA’s JUICE mission\, which will place the first spacecraft in orbit around a moon other than our own\, Jupiter’s Ganymede. She is Executive Chair of the Science and Technology Facilities Council\, a Fellow of the Royal Society\, was awarded the Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society\, and was made CBE in the 2018 New Year Honours.
URL:https://www.astronomy.org.nz/event/monthly-meeting-september-the-hunt-for-oceans-on-icy-moons/
LOCATION:Stardome Observatory & Planetarium\, 670 Manukau Road\, Epsom\, Auckland\, 1345
CATEGORIES:AAS Meetings,Monthly Meeting
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20260921T200000
DTEND;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20260921T210000
DTSTAMP:20260809T013948Z
CREATED:20260809T013938Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260809T013948Z
UID:3176-1790020800-1790024400@www.astronomy.org.nz
SUMMARY:Practical Astronomy September - The Spring Night Sky
DESCRIPTION:This will be one of our seasonal Planetarium sessions. We will use the Planetarium to explore the Spring Night Sky. This is a great way to improve your knowledge of the Spring constellations and learn about some of the deep sky objects to be found in them.
URL:https://www.astronomy.org.nz/event/practical-astronomy-september-the-spring-night-sky-3/
LOCATION:Stardome Observatory & Planetarium\, 670 Manukau Road\, Epsom\, Auckland\, 1345
CATEGORIES:AAS Meetings,Practical Astronomy
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20260928T200000
DTEND;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20260928T210000
DTSTAMP:20260809T014613Z
CREATED:20260809T014613Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260809T014613Z
UID:3181-1790625600-1790629200@www.astronomy.org.nz
SUMMARY:Film Night September - The Cosmos 45 Years Later - Blues for a Red Planet
DESCRIPTION:Episode 5: Blues for a Red Planet\nSubject: Mars exploration history; Percival Lowell’s canals; Viking missions (1976) and search for life. 45 Years Later: \n\nRovers (Sojourner 1997 → Perseverance 2021): ancient river/lake beds\, organic molecules\, “leopard spot” biosignature candidate (2024).\nPerseverance caching samples for return (2030s); evidence of past habitability strengthened dramatically.\nMethane detections and subsurface ice; potential for past microbial life now a major focus.
URL:https://www.astronomy.org.nz/event/film-night-september-the-cosmos-45-years-later-blues-for-a-red-planet/
LOCATION:Stardome Observatory & Planetarium\, 670 Manukau Road\, Epsom\, Auckland\, 1345
CATEGORIES:AAS Meetings,Film Night
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20261005T200000
DTEND;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20261005T210000
DTSTAMP:20260916T102225Z
CREATED:20260916T102206Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260916T102225Z
UID:3209-1791230400-1791234000@www.astronomy.org.nz
SUMMARY:Introduction to Astronomy October 2026
DESCRIPTION:The Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope\nNASA’s Next Giant Leap\nChris Benton explains what makes NASA’s next-generation flagship\, the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope\, so special in its design and capabilities. With a field of view 100 times greater than Hubble\, it will map the cosmos with unprecedented speed and detail\, unravelling the mysteries of dark energy and dark matter. Learn not only what astronomers will discover from this\, but also how the telescope’s highly sophisticated coronagraph allows astronomers to directly image exoplanets next to their host stars despite the latter’s intense glare. Using this and gravitational microlensing\, which we will discuss\, scientists expect to discover about 100\,000 new exoplanet candidates. Come and hear about all of this and much more!
URL:https://www.astronomy.org.nz/event/3209/
LOCATION:Stardome Observatory\, 670 Manukau Rd\, Epsom\, Auckland\, 1345\, New Zealand
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20261012T190000
DTEND;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20261012T200000
DTSTAMP:20260930T075113Z
CREATED:20260930T075113Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260930T075113Z
UID:3214-1791831600-1791835200@www.astronomy.org.nz
SUMMARY:Emerging Astronomers October - Reading the Moon's Scars
DESCRIPTION:Reading the Moon’s Scars \nEarth was hit by asteroids and comets just as hard as the Moon was\, but our craters are gone\, erased by wind\, water and moving continents. The Moon kept every single one. That makes its surface a history book of the early solar system and even Earth itself. In this session we’ll learn to read it: what the dark patches and light stripes are\, how we worked out that some craters are billions of years old and others surprisingly young\, and how a few kilograms of Moon rock let us learn about worlds we’ve never even landed on. Plus the newest scars of all – the ones being made right now.
URL:https://www.astronomy.org.nz/event/emerging-astronomers-october-reading-the-moons-scars/
LOCATION:Stardome Observatory & Planetarium\, 670 Manukau Road\, Epsom\, Auckland\, 1345
CATEGORIES:Young Astronomers
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20261012T200000
DTEND;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20261012T210000
DTSTAMP:20261003T000141Z
CREATED:20260930T093905Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20261003T000141Z
UID:3219-1791835200-1791838800@www.astronomy.org.nz
SUMMARY:Monthly Meeting October - Eclipse Chasing is Addictive
DESCRIPTION:A total solar eclipse is something that everyone should experience in their lifetime. I have been fortunate to see several solar eclipses and each one has been unique. With upcoming eclipses in 2027\, 2028 and three crossing New Zealand in the 2030’s\, there is the opportunity for you to experience one as well. Sharing some of my experiences from past eclipses\, I will talk about what to think about when planning\nfor eclipse viewing\, such as location and equipment. The only danger is that once you have experienced it once\, you want to see more. \nAstrophotography Group \nGavin Logan and Andrew Buckingham are resurrecting the AAS Astrophotography Group. The group will meet quarterly as part to the Practical Astronomy programme on the third Monday. Aimed for both beginners and the more experienced\, we will cover the various types of astrophotography. These will be aimed to be practical sessions with shared knowledge looking at equipment\, software and the many setups you can have. We are also planning some workshops during 2027. As part of this talk I will give an introduction to what we are planning and would like to get feedback from members on what topics you would like us to cover. If you are doing astrophotography or are thinking of getting started\, come along. \nSpeaker: Andrew Buckingham \n 
URL:https://www.astronomy.org.nz/event/monthly-meeting-october-eclipse-chasing-is-addictive/
LOCATION:Stardome Observatory & Planetarium\, 670 Manukau Road\, Epsom\, Auckland\, 1345
CATEGORIES:AAS Meetings,Monthly Meeting
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20261019T200000
DTEND;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20261019T210000
DTSTAMP:20261017T223520Z
CREATED:20261017T221945Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20261017T223520Z
UID:3233-1792440000-1792443600@www.astronomy.org.nz
SUMMARY:Practical Astronomy October - Visual Observing
DESCRIPTION:This month we will be discussing visual observing\, including the way the human eye works\, optics and eyepieces\, sky conditions\, ambient light and observing targets\, from the Sun to galaxies.
URL:https://www.astronomy.org.nz/event/practical-astronomy-october-visual-observing/
LOCATION:Stardome Observatory & Planetarium\, 670 Manukau Road\, Epsom\, Auckland\, 1345
CATEGORIES:AAS Meetings,Practical Astronomy
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20261026T200000
DTEND;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20261026T210000
DTSTAMP:20261017T222539Z
CREATED:20261017T222539Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20261017T222539Z
UID:3235-1793044800-1793048400@www.astronomy.org.nz
SUMMARY:Film Night October - The Cosmos 45 Years Later -  Traveller’s Tales
DESCRIPTION:Episode 6: Traveller’s Tales \nSubject: Voyager missions to Jupiter and Saturn; planetary atmospheres\, rings\, moons (Io volcanoes\, Titan). 45 Years Later: \nVoyager 2 completed grand tour (Uranus/Neptune 1986/1989); both probes still operating in interstellar space (2020s).\nCassini-Huygens (2004–2017): detailed Titan lakes\, Enceladus plumes with organics and hydrothermal activity.\nEuropa Clipper (launched 2024) en route; multiple ocean worlds confirmed
URL:https://www.astronomy.org.nz/event/film-night-october-the-cosmos-45-years-later-travellers-tales/
LOCATION:Stardome Observatory & Planetarium\, 670 Manukau Road\, Epsom\, Auckland\, 1345
CATEGORIES:AAS Meetings,Film Night
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20261102T200000
DTEND;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20261102T210000
DTSTAMP:20261018T220852Z
CREATED:20261018T220852Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20261018T220852Z
UID:3240-1793649600-1793653200@www.astronomy.org.nz
SUMMARY:Introduction to Astronomy November 2026
DESCRIPTION:Journey through the Solar System\nOur guest speaker\, Jonathan Park of the Hamilton Astronomical Society\, will take us on a journey through the Solar System\, stopping at each planet along the way. At every stop\, we highlight one or two memorable facts – sometimes about the planet itself\, sometimes about the moons of the giant planets. Animations\, photos\, and graphics help convey the Solar System’s scale and bring each world to life as we explore it. This will be a fun and spectacular evening not to be missed!
URL:https://www.astronomy.org.nz/event/introduction-to-astronomy-november-2026/
LOCATION:Stardome Observatory\, 670 Manukau Rd\, Epsom\, Auckland\, 1345\, New Zealand
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20261115T183000
DTEND;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20261115T220000
DTSTAMP:20261008T034109Z
CREATED:20260819T081153Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20261008T034109Z
UID:3191-1794767400-1794780000@www.astronomy.org.nz
SUMMARY:2026 Annual Burbidge Dinner
DESCRIPTION:This is the Annual Burbidge Dinner held in honour of the principle founder of the Auckland Astronomical Society\, Professor Percy Burbidge. Prior to the start of dinner we will be presenting the awards for the winners of the 2026 New Zealand Astrophotography Competition. The Dinner will be followed by the Burbidge Lecture\, which will be delivered by Dr Culan Howlett from the University of Queensland. \nCompleting the Map of Our Universe \nMost of our Universe is invisible\, hiding in the form of dark matter and dark energy\, mysterious ingredients that outweigh everything else combined yet have never been directly seen. Despite 50 years of effort\, their true nature remains as dark as their name suggests. In this talk\, we’ll go on a tour through this hidden Universe\, from the Big Bang to today\, to see how enormous maps of the positions and motions of millions of galaxies offer one of the most promising routes to shedding light on them. Drawing on an enormous international effort\, we’ll explore some of the amazing structures these maps have revealed\, examine tantalising new evidence that dark energy has been weakening over the last 3 billion years\, and see hints that gravity on the largest scales may be departing from Einstein’s predictions. These departures from our previous best model of the Universe could be clues to the true nature of its “dark” components. Finally\, we’ll look to the future\, and how we hope to one day chart nearly every galaxy in the observable Universe\, completing a map over 100 years in the making.Bio: \nDr. Cullan Howlett is Senior Lecturer in Astrophysics at the University of Queensland\, and recipient of both the 2026 Pawsey Medal from the Australian Academy of Science and the 2024 Ruby-Payne Scott Award from the Australian Institute of Physics. His research focuses on mapping the positions and motions of millions of galaxies to understand how our Universe has evolved since the Big Bang. He holds leadership roles in some of the largest galaxy surveys ever undertaken across both the northern and southern hemispheres\, using cutting-edge computational and statistical tools to make sense of these extraordinarily large and complex datasets. \n  \nTicket Information \nThe price includes attendance and a buffet dinner. There will be a cash bar available. The final booking date is 8th November 2026. \nEarlybird price for members and their guests $65 pp until 31st October 2026. After 31st October until 8th November\, the price for members and their guests is $75 pp. \nMembers may book tickets by logging in to the Hello Club Auckland Astronomical Society membership portal and select 2026 Burbidge Dinner from the Upcoming Events:  \nhttps://members.astronomy.org.nz/ \nEarlybird price for non members is $75 pp until 31st October 2026. After 31st October until 8th November\, the price for non members is $85 pp. Note that non members are required to pay the ticket fee at time of booking. Non members can purchase tickets by emailing treasurer @ astronomy dot org dot nz \n  \n  \n 
URL:https://www.astronomy.org.nz/event/2026-annual-burbidge-dinner/
LOCATION:Sorrento In the Park\, Cornwall Park\, Auckland\, New Zealand
CATEGORIES:Burbidge Dinner
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