[1]Homepage

Accessibility links

    * [2]Skip to content
    * [3]Accessibility Help

  [4]BBC Account
  [5]Notifications
    * [6]Home
    * [7]News
    * [8]Sport
    * [9]Weather
    * [10]iPlayer
    * [11]Sounds
    * [12]CBBC
    * [13]CBeebies
    * [14]Food
    * [15]Bitesize
    * [16]Arts
    * [17]Taster
    * [18]Local
    * [19]Three
    * [20]Menu

  [21]Search
  Search the BBC ____________________ (BUTTON) Search the BBC

  (BUTTON)

  Menu
  Loading
  [22]Adventure & Experience | [23]Eco-tourism
  Saving the night sky: New Zealand's craziest experiment yet?
  [24]Share using Email
  Share on Twitter
  Share on Facebook[25]Share on Linkedin
  (Image credit: Arutthaphon Poolsawasd/Getty Images)
  (Credit: Arutthaphon Poolsawasd/Getty Images)
  By Jacqui Gibson3rd February 2022
  The Pacific nation's audacious bid to become the world's first dark sky
  nation might provide a blueprint for the rest of the world.
  I

  If Becky Bateman had to pick just one star out of the 3,000 you can
  typically see in the New Zealand night sky, she'd pick Arcturus, the
  brightest star in the Boötes constellation. It shines orange, for one
  thing. And, because of that, is statistically most likely to have life
  orbiting around it.

  Most nights for the past two years, the [26]astronomy guide has used a
  green laser pointer and collapsible Dobsonian telescope to show people
  around the night skies of the Wairarapa, a rural wine region in the
  south-eastern corner of the North Island. Year-round, the nomadic guide
  meets people in public parks, backyards and on the wild beaches of the
  South Wairarapa coast. During New Zealand's clement summer months, as
  wine tourism peaks, she can be found waving her pointer, like a Jedi,
  high above the bushy, green vines of the region's popular vineyards
  surrounded by stargazers sipping pinot noir.

  Tours begin with an introduction to the Southern Cross and Milky Way
  and generally extend to chat about the origin of the universe and the
  fleeting time in which humans have occupied planet Earth. These days,
  as one of the Wairarapa's leading voices on the benefits of stargazing,
  Bateman is just as likely to end up urging guests to get behind the
  country's bid to protect the night sky. To her, a clear night's sky
  free from light pollution is one of the last wilderness frontiers
  facing the threat of extinction – and now is the time to act.

  Bateman is not alone in thinking this way. In late 2019, the Pacific
  nation announced a plan to become the world's first dark sky nation at
  the [27]New Zealand Starlight Conference in Takapō. Conference
  delegates from around the world were concerned about the world's
  increasing light pollution and its proven negative effects on human
  health and nocturnal wildlife but were heartened by the exceptional
  quality of starry nights in New Zealand and the country's growing
  appetite for dark sky conservation. They agreed the plan was audacious
  but believed if New Zealand could pull off such a crazy experiment, it
  just might provide a blueprint for the world.
  Well-positioned for stargazing, Whitimanuka Retreat in the Wairarapa is
  kitted out with binoculars and books on what to see in the night sky
  (Credit: Jacqui Gibson)

  Well-positioned for stargazing, Whitimanuka Retreat in the Wairarapa is
  kitted out with binoculars and books on what to see in the night sky
  (Credit: Jacqui Gibson)

  On a recent winter evening, Bateman set up her telescope on the frosty
  porch of [28]Whitimanuka Retreat. I'd hired her to join me at an
  off-grid cabin I'd rented in the hills of a working sheep and beef farm
  about an hour's drive from my hometown of Wellington.

  As the clouds cleared, Bateman unpacked and assembled her manual
  telescope, laid out half a dozen glass jars hand-painted red and filled
  with fairy lights (to subtly light our way while not obliterating our
  night vision) and set to work revealing the evening's constellations.
  Minutes into a description of where to find the Southern Cross (first,
  look for a kite-shaped constellation in the Milky Way), a shooting star
  flew across the sky.

To me, the dark skies are humankind's last true natural wilderness.
Potentially, they won't be with us in years to come

  "Oh, wonderful. Did you see that?" asked Bateman enthusiastically. "I
  see 10 or so shooting stars every few hours I'm out here. Lately,
  though, I'm seeing more and more man-made pollution like Elon Musk's
  SpaceX satellite. To me, the dark skies are humankind's last true
  natural wilderness. Potentially, they won't be with us in years to
  come. It worries me – there's so much to lose in the world's obsession
  with space tourism and so many reasons to preserve what's here."

  When it comes to dark sky preservation on the world stage, the
  [29]International Dark-Sky Association (IDA) is the organisation
  responsible. Set up in 1988, it runs a dark sky conservation programme
  that recognises the quality of the world's dark skies using a
  five-pronged certification system. Within the system, dark sky
  sanctuaries rank highest as the most remote and often darkest places in
  the world, followed by reserves, parks, communities and urban night sky
  places.

  To achieve IDA certification, a dark sky must meet a range of criteria,
  including protection from light pollution, accessibility to visitors
  and wide-ranging support from residents.
  The six-inch refractor telescope at Mount Cook Lakeside Retreat's
  observatory can be fitted with a DSLR camera for astrophotography
  (Credit: Mount Cook Lakeside Retreat)

  The six-inch refractor telescope at Mount Cook Lakeside Retreat's
  observatory can be fitted with a DSLR camera for astrophotography
  (Credit: Mount Cook Lakeside Retreat)

  In 2012, New Zealand's Aoraki Mackenzie community successfully applied
  to the IDA to become an accredited dark sky reserve. An inland plain
  region about 180km south-west of Christchurch, where large country
  sheep stations have been the norm for more than a century, Aoraki
  Mackenzie is rugged, isolated country dominated by mountain and lake
  scenery.

  Today, [30]Aoraki Mackenzie's 4,300sq km dark reserve is the only one
  of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere and just one of 18 in the world.
  Two New Zealand communities, Great Barrier Island and Rakiura Stewart
  Island, have since become sanctuaries, with Wai-iti, a 135-hectare hunk
  of council land in Tasman District, now an IDA-certified dark sky park.
  Another 20 New Zealand dark sky communities – including the Wairarapa —
  are looking to follow suit and gain some form of certification.

  You may also be interested in:
  • [31]Australia's answer to the Northern Lights
  • [32]The tiny island of shooting stars
  • [33]New Zealand's 180-million-year-old forest

  In 2019, it was Dark Skies Group Director at the Royal Astronomical
  Society of New Zealand, Steve Butler, who daringly announced the
  country's plans to become the world's first dark sky nation. "It was
  more of an aspirational rather than a hard-and-fast goal," he told me
  recently. "The IDA doesn't yet have an official dark sky nation
  designation. But when it does New Zealand will be first in line."

  "Are we obsessed as a people? Probably. We're definitely uniquely
  advantaged," he explained. "Look, Kiwis are an outdoor people with easy
  access to the natural dark skies of the Southern Hemisphere. Very few
  of us have grown up without being awed by New Zealand's night skies,
  particularly those you see in national parks like Aoraki Mackenzie or
  Rakiura Stewart Island. Sure, not all of us know how to find the
  Southern Cross, but we're a far cry from 80% of the world's population
  who can't even see the stars of the night sky."

  That's why when New Zealanders were asked to comply with the IDA's
  rigorous requirements to restrict outdoor lighting and switch to
  low-powered yellow lighting in regions such as Aoraki Mackenzie and
  elsewhere, by-and-large they were up for it, Butler explained. It's why
  Butler is confident even the country's urban centres, over time, will
  find ways to limit artificial light spilling into natural areas and
  reduce light use generally. It's also why more and more New Zealanders
  are joining the global chorus to save the world's night skies.
  Data cited by the United Nations Environment Programme suggests
  artificial light is increasing globally by at least 2% every year
  (Credit: Lingxiao Xie/Getty Images)

  Data cited by the United Nations Environment Programme suggests
  artificial light is increasing globally by at least 2% every year
  (Credit: Lingxiao Xie/Getty Images)

  Every two years, for example, New Zealand hosts [34]the New Zealand
  Starlight Conference attracting hundreds of dark sky proponents from
  overseas and around the country. Dark sky associations eager to achieve
  IDA status are sprouting from Kiwi townships like weeds. Local mayors
  are talking about changing national planning and building regulations
  to keep lighting low. Even government entities like Waka Kotahi, New
  Zealand's transport agency, are looking to install IDI-compliant
  lighting on state highways that fall within dark sky areas.

  Some New Zealanders, like Kaye and Luke Paardekooper, owners of
  [35]Mount Cook Lakeside Retreat, have taken matters into their own
  hands. In 2015, the pair added a wine cellar and observatory to their
  66-hectare luxury resort on the clifftop of Lake Pūkaki in Aoraki
  Mackenzie.

  Initially, it was aimed at overseas tourists wanting an intimate,
  upmarket astrotourism experience to complement the kind of larger group
  tour they might experience at [36]the Dark Sky Project. Based in the
  nearby township of Takapō, the Dark Sky Project promotes the dark skies
  of the region, sharing both Māori and Western ideas about astronomy,
  and taking visitors to the University of Canterbury Mt John
  Observatory.

  But the couple admit they too love to rug up, open the roof and simply
  gaze at the quiet blackness overhead. The ability to do that is what
  they want to hold on to.

The kind of sleep you get here, particularly during the long nights of
winter, honestly, is second to none

  On a recent overnight stay, Kaye told me the country's bid for dark
  nation status, to them, was about much more than the likely boost to
  tourism. "Dark skies are great for wellbeing – that's what we tell
  anyone who'll listen. [37]Research by the Royal Society [of New
  Zealand] on the effects of blue light, for example, shows too much blue
  light at the wrong time of day can disrupt our sleep, our immunity, our
  hormonal balance and even our mood," said Kaye, who's spent more than
  six years on her local dark sky association board.

  "We don't have that light pollution here, which is why it needs
  preserving. Without the dominance of blue light, it's much easier to
  return to your natural circadian rhythms. The kind of sleep you get
  here, particularly during the long nights of winter, honestly, is
  second to none."
  The Dark Sky Project promotes the dark skies of the region and shares
  both Māori and Western ideas about astronomy (Credit: Jacqui Gibson)

  The Dark Sky Project promotes the dark skies of the region and shares
  both Māori and Western ideas about astronomy (Credit: Jacqui Gibson)

  For Aoraki Mackenzie Dark Sky Reserve Board member Victoria Campbell,
  of Ngāi Tahu tribal descent, the country's growing obsession with the
  night sky is encouraging for other reasons.

  "It's made Kiwis curious about their night sky heritage and the
  cultural traditions that underpin it," she said. "New Zealanders come
  from a long line of astronomers, starting with Polynesian explorers
  like Rākaihautū who discovered Aotearoa (New Zealand) in an ocean-going
  waka (canoe) using the stars, sun and moon. British explorer James Cook
  used the same night sky to get here. In pre-colonial times, Māori used
  a unique calendar — one that began each year with the rising of the
  Matariki star cluster — to reflect on the year that had gone and plan
  for the year ahead."

  On 24 June 2022, thanks to a 2020 pre-election promise by Prime
  Minister Jacinda Ardern, New Zealanders will celebrate Makariki – the
  mid-winter constellation that marks the Māori New Year – as a public
  holiday for the first time. About an hour before sunrise, people from
  all walks of life will come together, remember loved ones who have
  passed and look to the stars for hope and inspiration before sharing
  kai (food) and a hot cup of tea.

  For many, like Campbell, the revival of Matariki may be the country's
  boldest, best expression of dark sky nationhood yet.

  --

  Join more than three million BBC Travel fans by liking us
  on [38]Facebook, or follow us on [39]Twitter and [40]Instagram.

  If you liked this story, [41]sign up for the weekly bbc.com features
  newsletter called "The Essential List". A handpicked selection of
  stories from BBC Future, Culture, Worklife and Travel, delivered to
  your inbox every Friday.

  [42]Share using Email
  Share on Twitter
  Share on Facebook[43]Share on Linkedin
  (BUTTON) Share

Recommended Articles

    * [44]Adventure & Experience: [45]Is this Australia's best-kept
      secret?
      [46]Is this Australia's best-kept secret? thumbnail
    * [47]travel: [48]The tiny island of shooting stars
      [49]The tiny island of shooting stars thumbnail
    * [50]Geological Marvels: [51]A relic from an ancient supercontinent
      [52]Close up of fossilised tree stumps at Curio Bay, New Zealand
      thumbnail

  Around the BBC

Explore the BBC

    * [53]Home
    * [54]News
    * [55]Sport
    * [56]Weather
    * [57]iPlayer
    * [58]Sounds
    * [59]CBBC
    * [60]CBeebies
    * [61]Food
    * [62]Bitesize
    * [63]Arts
    * [64]Taster
    * [65]Local
    * [66]Three

    * [67]Terms of Use
    * [68]About the BBC
    * [69]Privacy Policy
    * [70]Cookies
    * [71]Accessibility Help
    * [72]Parental Guidance
    * [73]Contact the BBC
    * [74]Get Personalised Newsletters

  Copyright © 2022 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of
  external sites. [75]Read about our approach to external linking.

  [p?c1=2&c2=17986528&cs_ucfr=0&cv=2.0&cj=1]

References

  Visible links
  1. https://www.bbc.co.uk/
  2. https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20220202-saving-the-night-sky-new-zealands-craziest-experiment-yet#orb-modules
  3. https://www.bbc.co.uk/accessibility/
  4. https://account.bbc.com/account
  5. https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20220202-saving-the-night-sky-new-zealands-craziest-experiment-yet
  6. https://www.bbc.co.uk/
  7. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news
  8. https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport
  9. https://www.bbc.co.uk/weather
 10. https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer
 11. https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds
 12. https://www.bbc.co.uk/cbbc
 13. https://www.bbc.co.uk/cbeebies
 14. https://www.bbc.co.uk/food
 15. https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize
 16. https://www.bbc.co.uk/arts
 17. https://www.bbc.co.uk/taster
 18. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/localnews
 19. https://www.bbc.co.uk/bbcthree
 20. https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20220202-saving-the-night-sky-new-zealands-craziest-experiment-yet#orb-footer
 21. https://search.bbc.co.uk/search?scope=all
 22. https://www.bbc.com/travel/columns/adventure-experience
 23. https://www.bbc.com/travel/tags/eco-tourism
 24. mailto:?subject=Shared from BBC:Saving the night sky: New Zealand's craziest experiment yet?&body=https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20220202-saving-the-night-sky-new-zealands-craziest-experiment-yet?ocid=ww.social.link.email
 25. https://www.linkedin.com/shareArticle?mini=true&url=https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20220202-saving-the-night-sky-new-zealands-craziest-experiment-yet?ocid=ww.social.link.linkedin&title=Saving the night sky: New Zealand's craziest experiment yet?
 26. https://www.underthestars.co.nz/
 27. https://starlightconference.org.nz/
 28. https://whitimanuka.co.nz/
 29. https://www.darksky.org/
 30. https://www.darksky.org/our-work/conservation/idsp/reserves/aorakimackenzie/
 31. https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20200706-australias-answer-to-the-northern-lights
 32. https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20151119-the-tiny-island-of-shooting-stars
 33. https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20211111-new-zealands-180-million-year-old-forest
 34. https://starlightconference.org.nz/
 35. https://www.mtcookretreat.nz/
 36. https://www.darkskyproject.co.nz/
 37. https://www.royalsociety.org.nz/major-issues-and-projects/blue-light-aotearoa/
 38. https://www.facebook.com/BBCTravel/
 39. https://twitter.com/BBC_Travel
 40. https://www.instagram.com/bbc_travel/
 41. http://pages.emails.bbc.com/subscribe/?ocid=ear.bbc.email.we.email-signup
 42. mailto:?subject=Shared from BBC:Saving the night sky: New Zealand's craziest experiment yet?&body=https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20220202-saving-the-night-sky-new-zealands-craziest-experiment-yet?ocid=ww.social.link.email
 43. https://www.linkedin.com/shareArticle?mini=true&url=https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20220202-saving-the-night-sky-new-zealands-craziest-experiment-yet?ocid=ww.social.link.linkedin&title=Saving the night sky: New Zealand's craziest experiment yet?
 44. https://www.bbc.com/travel/columns/adventure-experience
 45. https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20200706-australias-answer-to-the-northern-lights
 46. https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20200706-australias-answer-to-the-northern-lights
 47. https://www.bbc.com/travel
 48. https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20151119-the-tiny-island-of-shooting-stars
 49. https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20151119-the-tiny-island-of-shooting-stars
 50. https://www.bbc.com/travel/columns/geological-marvels
 51. https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20211111-new-zealands-180-million-year-old-forest
 52. https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20211111-new-zealands-180-million-year-old-forest
 53. https://www.bbc.co.uk/
 54. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news
 55. https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport
 56. https://www.bbc.co.uk/weather
 57. https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer
 58. https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds
 59. https://www.bbc.co.uk/cbbc
 60. https://www.bbc.co.uk/cbeebies
 61. https://www.bbc.co.uk/food
 62. https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize
 63. https://www.bbc.co.uk/arts
 64. https://www.bbc.co.uk/taster
 65. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/localnews
 66. https://www.bbc.co.uk/bbcthree
 67. https://www.bbc.co.uk/usingthebbc/terms/
 68. https://www.bbc.co.uk/aboutthebbc
 69. https://www.bbc.co.uk/usingthebbc/privacy/
 70. https://www.bbc.co.uk/usingthebbc/cookies/
 71. https://www.bbc.co.uk/accessibility/
 72. https://www.bbc.co.uk/guidance
 73. https://www.bbc.co.uk/contact
 74. https://www.bbc.co.uk/bbcnewsletter
 75. https://www.bbc.co.uk/editorialguidelines/guidance/feeds-and-links

  Hidden links:
 77. https://www.bbc.com/travel
 78. https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=Saving%20the%20night%20sky:%20New%20Zealand's%20craziest%20experiment%20yet?&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bbc.com%2Ftravel%2Farticle%2F20220202-saving-the-night-sky-new-zealands-craziest-experiment-yet%3Focid%3Dww.social.link.twitter&via=bbc_travel
 79. https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bbc.com%2Ftravel%2Farticle%2F20220202-saving-the-night-sky-new-zealands-craziest-experiment-yet%3Focid%3Dww.social.link.facebook&t=Saving%20the%20night%20sky:%20New%20Zealand's%20craziest%20experiment%20yet?
 80. https://starlightconference.org.nz/
 81. https://www.royalsociety.org.nz/major-issues-and-projects/blue-light-aotearoa/
 82. https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=Saving%20the%20night%20sky:%20New%20Zealand's%20craziest%20experiment%20yet?&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bbc.com%2Ftravel%2Farticle%2F20220202-saving-the-night-sky-new-zealands-craziest-experiment-yet%3Focid%3Dww.social.link.twitter&via=bbc_travel
 83. https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bbc.com%2Ftravel%2Farticle%2F20220202-saving-the-night-sky-new-zealands-craziest-experiment-yet%3Focid%3Dww.social.link.facebook&t=Saving%20the%20night%20sky:%20New%20Zealand's%20craziest%20experiment%20yet?