Them thar hills
There have been several reports recently of plans to set up the Chinese settlement at Lawrence for visitors to view and appreciate this chapter in the history of the Otago goldfields.
Science
Bright trio to cluster in Pisces
Bright trio to cluster in Pisces
If you’re an early riser with a clear view to the east, this week offers a celestial treat for which it’s well worth setting your alarm.
A new beginning
A new beginning
For more than a decade, I have called Portobello home.
Carelessly obscuring the universe
Carelessly obscuring the universe
Queenstown, by day, is breathtaking.
A language in common
A language in common
Finding out what happened before the existence of written records increasingly relies on a mixture of disciplines.
Farewell to Orion’s colours
Farewell to Orion’s colours
The southern hemisphere autumn equinox occurs at 10.01pm on Thursday (March 20).
There’s a strange moon on the rise
There’s a strange moon on the rise
On Friday, local skywatchers will be treated (or possibly tricked) by a rather peculiar celestial event: a sunset lunar eclipse as the moon rises.
Tracing Cook’s footsteps
Tracing Cook’s footsteps
Just before Covid-19 struck, my wife Polly and I boarded the Caledonian Sky, a small cruise ship with a maximum of 120 passengers, in Milford Sound.
Old names for inequality
Old names for inequality
When the Marsden Fund was established in 1994, the government designed it "to fund excellent fundamental research".
Pride in part in revealing domestic chicken story
Pride in part in revealing domestic chicken story
When a new law was introduced not long ago that banned battery hens, there was a shortage of eggs.
Exploring Gemini
Exploring Gemini
This week, I invite you on a journey through the constellation Gemini, the Twins.
Traces of her journey
Traces of her journey
On a summer’s day 3395 years ago, a young woman in Denmark died and was interred under a tumulus, in a coffin hewed from a massive oak, wrapped in a blanket and an ox hide.
No easy task to rustle photons from a glowing sky
No easy task to rustle photons from a glowing sky
After a week of cloud-choked nights putting paid to any chance of astronomy, the forecast finally promised clear skies last Sunday.
Moon meets Matariki
Moon meets Matariki
The moon reaches its first quarter on Wednesday at 9.02pm.
Whistling up the tune to which we still dance
Whistling up the tune to which we still dance
Towards the end of last year, the Dunedin Symphony Orchestra put on an evening of music from ABBA.
Voyage was French for failure
Voyage was French for failure
A small French cruise ship named La Perouse has been a regular visitor to Dunedin, but I wonder how many know why it is so named.
Trip often outshines the destination
Trip often outshines the destination
With his 59th birthday looming large, and after weeks of unrelenting clouds, Ian Griffin was itching for an astronomical challenge.
Mexican site mystical
Mexican site mystical
The Shanghai Archaeological Forum is a gathering held every two years that brings together archaeologists from all over the world.
Bright comet in southwest sky worth seeking out
Bright comet in southwest sky worth seeking out
As I type these words, I am getting excited at the prospect of seeing what might be the brightest comet of 2025 in the southwest after sunset.
Tracing red ochre’s roots
Tracing red ochre’s roots
Four years ago, a graduate student of mine asked if she could analyse the use of red ochre in the human burials from one of my excavations.