Nelson Astronomical Society

Rescheduled - Vacuums Don't Suck: How Our Planet Doesn't Lose Atmosphere to Space - Presented by Jeremy Taylor
2025-09-04 19:00 - 21:00 (Pacific/Auckland) | Milton Room, Cawthron Institute, 164 Milton Street, The Wood, Nelson, 7010
There’s a line Flat Earthers use when criticising our basic understandings about our world that seems to win people to their way of thinking: “if space is a vacuum, why doesn’t it suck all our atmosphere into space?” This gets people imagining the need for some sort of crystal dome to hold our atmosphere in. This presentation will use familiar concepts and real life personal observations to show that vacuums don’t suck: pressure pushes – and how other forces also play a part in determining how things really work. Then we’ll consider how we are actually, in fact, losing atmosphere to space – at the rate of 90 tonnes per day.

Star Party
2025-09-27 19:00 - 21:00 | Wai-iti Reserve, Wai-iti Reserve, Wai-iti, 7095, New Zealand
Our next event at the Wai-iti International Dark Sky Park is Saturn Rising on the 27th September. The focus will be on planets and the moon. Mars will be setting in the west. Saturn will be rising in the north East, and the 5 day old moon will be in Scorpio. The moon may make some deep sky objects harder to see. But there will be plenty to observe.
Public viewing will be from 7pm until 9pm .

Charles Gifford = Forgotten Kiwi Scientist – Presented by Robert Rea
2025-10-02 19:00 - 21:00 | Milton Room, Cawthron Institute, 164 Milton Street, The Wood, Nelson, 7010
By studying World War I battlefields, Charles Gifford who was a teacher
at Wellington College developed the theory that lunar craters were
formed by impacts. At the conclusion of the war the favoured theory
was the lunar craters were volcanic. Gifford used mathematics to
explain how meteors gave rise to craters.

End of Year Star Party
2025-11-21 18:00 - 23:30 | Wai-iti Reserve, Wai-iti Reserve, Wai-iti, 7095, New Zealand
“The Final Club Dark Sky Park night gathering at the Wai-iti Dark Sky Park for 2025 will take place as an end of year celebration. (at 437/439 Wakefield- Kohatu highway, Wai Iti, south of Wakefield).

Date is Friday 21st November 2025. Postponement night Sat 22nd if the weather is poor on Friday, or stay two nights if you wish.The new moon is the 20th so should be a good dark night.

Saturn should be good viewing, if you come early bring a solar scope if you have one.

Flexi start BBQ from 6:00pm. All food and drinks is BYO. A gas ring and frypan available if you don’t have cooking gear.

We encourage folk to stay the night, as the park is open and freedom camping for two nights is permitted. Bring your tent, caravan, motorhome, whatever you have and the family.

Bring your gear for astronomy, or astrophotography, bino’s whatever you have and enjoy the night under the stars. Or just come and watch and learn what others are doing. It’s an ideal time to bring your scope, learn how to use it , and where to point it and learn more about the hobby. It’s also a great time to experiment a bit. Just come and have some fun.

We encourage a stay over as it is not dark until late, for stargazing.

BUT we want you to come if you can only come for the BBQ and a chat. or just come for some of the evening. Whatever you can fit in..Is your club and this is our playground.
The event is FREE, for all club members and those with an interest in enjoying the night.
No need to register.
Look for the Dark Sky Projects flag to join the group, as freedom camping means there will be others parked up in the area.

Film Night - "The Messengers" & "The Farthest"
2025-12-03 19:00 - 23:00 | Suter Theatre, 208 Bridge Street, Nelson, New Zealand
The Nelson Astronomical Society is hosting a film evening at the Suter Theatre on the evening of December 3rd, with two very well rated astronomical documentaries being shown:
“Messengers” and “The Farthest”.
“Messengers” (45 minutes)

A new, immersive documentary by Canadian director Jeffrey Zablotny, MESSENGERS features the South Pole neutrino experiment as part of a surreal, poetic exploration of three groundbreaking particle physics experiments across the world. From a sealed laboratory carved into a Japanese mountain to the icy, inhospitable expanse of Antarctica, Messengers invites us to drift into otherworldly metaphysical contemplation.

“The Farthest” (121 Minutes)
Crossing The Line Productions award winning 2017 documentary, THE FARTHEST is the story of the Voyager mission, launched in 1977, as told firsthand by the indelible characters who made the mission happen. They are a small band of resourceful, ambitious, and passionate men and women who reached for the stars … and succeeded.

Bookings for this event – https://www.trybooking.com/nz/events/landing/17814
When: Wednesday 03 December 2025, 7 pm.
Where: Suter Theatre, 208 Bridge Street, Nelson 7010.

March Committee meeting
2026-02-13 08:00 - 17:00 | Nelson
This will be our last opportunity to organise things for our AGM

Total Lunar Eclipse
2026-03-03 22:00 - 2026-03-04 03:00 | Wai-iti Reserve, Wai-iti Reserve, Wai-iti, 7095, New Zealand
This lunar eclipse is late at night – totality will be between 0000 and 0100 – so think about joining us out at Wai-iti Dark Sky Park, staying overnight in the campsite to save heading home in the wee hours of the morning
No entry fee, but consider pocketing some coins and donate to the club when the koha tin is rattled

BHT Lecture: Astronomy vs the Billionaire Space Race | Dr. Samantha Lawler
2026-03-05 18:00 - 19:30 | Greenmeadows, 491 Main Road, Stoke, Tasman, 7011, New Zealand
We’re thrilled to announce the 2026 Beatrice Hill Tinsley Lecturer: Associate Professor Samantha Lawler, an astronomer at the University of Regina in Saskatchewan, Canada. Her headline talk, “Astronomy vs the Billionaire Space Race”, promises a lively, thought‑provoking look at how private space ventures are reshaping our skies and the future of astronomy.
Can we also bring Women and Girls in Astronomy to your attention? Women and Girls in Astronomy is a global initiative led by the International Astronomical Union’s Office for Astronomy Outreach, encouraging the astronomy community to celebrate and promote the achievements of women in science and astronomy, and to inspire girls and young women to stay engaged in STEM. More information is here:https://iauoutreach.org/global-projects/women-and-girls-in-astronomy
Please also note that the BHT Lecture is also just days before the March 8 International Women’s Day.

DST Ends (Hurrah!)
2026-04-05 02:00 - 15:00 | Nelson

AGM
2026-04-09 18:30 - 20:30 | Milton Room, Cawthron Institute, 164 Milton Street, The Wood, Nelson, 7010
This is the club’s Annual General Meeting – preceded by a short presentation on why protecting our dark skies is important, what the club has done and is currently doing to protect dark skies, and a demo of an adjustable colour-temperature light produced by local factory Switch.
