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James Smith
Astronomy – See Saturn and Mercury at their best
August is the month to dust off your gear and go out and observe the night skies – if the weather allows us to. We...
Astronomy – Death of a star
When stars like our sun enter very old age, they leave behind their burnt-out cores which we call ‘white dwarfs’. As the white dwarf star...
Astronomy – A closer look at Matariki
This year is the first year that New Zealand will officially celebrate the season of Matariki with a public holiday. This year, the holiday falls...
Astronomy – New home for astronomy club
With the new housing development taking place at our old meeting site, Faithfull Funeral Services in Red Beach Road, the Hibiscus Coast Astronomical Society was...
Astronomy – James Webb sees first light
Last month, the $10 billion James Webb Space telescope was fully focused and its performance is even better than hoped. Once the mirrors had been...
Astronomy – Is our moon Earth’s only companion?
We know that the moon orbits the earth, but did you know that we have two other confirmed companions? If you have been following the...
Astronomy – A Christmas Comet
Whizzing along at 70 kilometres per second and about 35 million kilometres away from us is a comet. Comet Leonard (C/2021 A1 (Leonard)) is coming...
Astronomy – Telescope under the tree?
As we approach Christmas, I often get asked, ‘what is a good, cheap telescope I can buy?’ Nine times out of 10, the type I...
Astronomy – High hopes for game changing telescope
On October 12, an unassuming ship arrived in French Guiana, carrying with it the $10 billion James Webb space telescope. The telescope is named after...
Astronomy – The case of the vanishing star
Astronomy can be amazing, beautiful and fill you with awe, but it is also filled with mysteries to rival those of Sherlock Holmes. From 2001...
