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Current News Stardome predicts sun these school holidays School children will get the chance to see the Sun close up these holidays with footage from international satellites and telescopes, brought to New Zealand by Auckland's Stardome Observatory. Heart of the Sun is being shown in the Stardome's full dome digital theatre with spectacular footage and stills from the Yohkoh Satellite, SOHO Space Telescope and TRACE spacecraft. Incredible scenes have been captured including the wave-like movement of the Sun's corona, which is magnified by the 360° projection field of the Stardome theatre. more... New Zealand backs Australian telescope bid New Zealand is formally supporting Australia's bid to host the world's largest radio telescope. The Square Kilometre Array, which Australia is bidding against South Africa to host, is a project which could answer longstanding riddles over the evolution of stars and galaxies and the origins of the universe. more... Switzerland's Large Hadron Collider Answering riddles about the universe is also on the agenda for the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). The particle accelerator on Switzerland's border will be used by physicists to study the smallest known particles and is expected to start up later this month. Its creators say it will “revolutionise our understanding, from the miniscule world deep within atoms to the vastness of the Universe”. more... Australian Aboriginals may have been first astronomers The formal study of astronomy may have arisen first among the Aboriginals of Australia, who were intrigued not just by the stars but also the dark gaps where stars were absent. For more click here.... more... NASA – 50 Years Of Landmarks In Space Exploration Fifty years ago, on July 29, 1958, U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower established the basis of NASA by signing the National Aeronautics and Space Act. Since then, NASA has become a leader in space exploration, marking history with unforgettable moments, such as the first human presence on the Moon. more... August Night Sky As soon as it gets dark on August nights it will become apparent that there is one object (apart from the moon) that is shining significantly brighter than everything else. This light can be found about half way up from the horizon in the early evening. more... Bright chunks at Phoenix Lander's Mars site. June 19, 2008 - Dice-size crumbs of bright material have vanished from inside a trench where they were photographed by NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander four days ago, convincing scientists that the material was frozen water that vaporized after digging exposed it. more... Spotting Planets in July. Ancient Greek astronomers gave the name ‘Planets' to the five visible lights in the sky that changed position. more... Phoenix Mars Lander Phoenix Mars Lander Sifts For Samples, Continues Imaging Landing Site. ScienceDaily (Jun. 9, 2008) — On Sunday, Sol 14 of NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander mission, mechanical shakers inside the Thermal and Evolved-Gas Analyzer will attempt to loosen clumped soils on the device's screens to allow material to fall into the oven for analysis later in the week. more... June night sky June evening skies say a final farewell to the constellation Orion which is setting due West by the time it gets dark enough to see stars well (around 6:45pm). more... Auckland Astronomers help discover solar system (15 Feb 08) AUCKLAND ASTRONOMERS HELP DISCOVER A NEW SOLAR SYSTEM THAT LOOKS VERY FAMILIAR...The closest match yet found to our solar system Stardome Observatory astronomer, Dr Grant Christie, is member of an international team that has discovered two planets orbiting a dim star nearly 5,000 light years away. more... Near Earth Asteroid Earth is set for a close shave by an asteroid next week (January 29th), according to NASA. Asteroid 2007 TU24, which measures between 150 and 600 metres in diameter, will pass Earth at a distance of 334,000 miles. Unfortunately for those in New Zealand wanting to get a view of the asteroid as it passes it will not be visible in the Southern Hemisphere skies more... Solar Eclipse Partial Solar Eclipse - A rare occurrence is happening on February 7th. more... Other news areas you may be interested in are... News Archive Current Missions Historical Astronomical Events

Feature Items New Planetoid discovered Researchers using telescopes at Palomar Observatory have discovered a planetoid larger than Pluto. Whether this new object (temporarily labelled 2003 UB313) will be designated a planet is, however, hotly debated. more... Auckland astronomers help discover a new planet Key observations were made by Dr. Grant Christie using the Nustrini Telescope at the Stardome observatory and Jennie McCormick, working from her own Farm Cove Observatory in Pakuranga. more...