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The Waka Tapu voyage

Navigator Jack Thatcher commanded the two waka hourua that sailed from Aotearoa (New Zealand) to Rapanui (Easter Island) and back. Te Aurere and its supporting vessel Ngahiraka Mai Tawhiti, known ...

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ARTICLE

Navigating the Waka Tapu

The Waka Tapu journey from Aotearoa to Rapanui (Easter Island) and back, which closed the Polynesian triangle, was navigated without instruments. Rights: The New Zealand Maori Arts and Crafts ...

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ARTICLE

The celestial sphere

To an observer on Earth, the stars appear to move together across the sky during the night, rising in the east and setting in the west. In reality, this does not happen. The stars appear to rise ...

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ACTIVITY

Navigating by the stars

In this activity, students learn the cardinal points of the compass. They also learn how to use the Sun and star constellations – the Southern Cross and the Pointers – to identify the cardinal ...

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ACTIVITY

Constellations in the night sky

In this activity, students learn about star constellations and that various cultures have their own names and legends about them. They will appreciate that identifying constellations and ...

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ACTIVITY

How’s your memory?

In this activity, students memorise a number of items from the star compass as wayfinding navigators would have to do. This experience may help students understand how and why wayfinders use the ...

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CITIZEN SCIENCE PROJECT

Planet Hunters

Search data from NASA’s Kepler spacecraft for the dips in star light intensity caused by exoplanets – planets that orbit stars other than the Sun. As these exoplanets pass between the star and ...

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CITIZEN SCIENCE PROJECT

Agent Exoplanet

Help astronomers at Las Cumbres Observatory, California, study exoplanets – planets that orbit stars other than our Sun. Do this by interpreting images taken by their telescopes in Hawaii ...

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CITIZEN SCIENCE PROJECT

Globe at Night

Globe at Night is an international citizen science campaign to raise public awareness of the impact of light pollution by inviting citizen scientists to measure and submit their night sky ...

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TEACHER PLD

Planet Earth and Beyond – The night sky

The Science Learning Hub has lots of resources for primary teachers related to the night sky in the Planet Earth and Beyond strand of the New Zealand Curriculum. The night sky is fascinating to ...

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TEACHER PLD

Hub resources with te reo Māori

The Science Learning Hub has a selection of resources that have been translated into te reo Māori and a number of resources that feature both te reo Māori and English. Our webinar Opportunities ...

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TEACHER PLD

Picturebooks for Matariki

In this recorded professional learning session picturebook expert Associate Professor Nicola Daly (co-director of the Waikato Picturebook Research Unit at the University of Waikato) discusses her ...

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VIDEO

Space whakapapa

Dr Pauline Harris (Victoria University of Wellington and Society of Māori Astronomy Research and Traditions – SMART) and David Perenara-O’Connell (Māngai, Tāwhaki Joint Venture) briefly explain ...

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VIDEO

Tātai arorangi

Early Māori relied on their detailed astronomical knowledge – tātai arorangi – to navigate the ocean, plant crops, harvest kaimoana and to tell the time. With the arrival of Europeans, a lot of ...

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VIDEO

Te Whakatakaka o Ahi Pepe MothNet

Ka kōrerorero kā tamariki me kā kaimahi o Te Kura Kaupapa Māori mō kā whāika o te whakatakaka Ahi Pepe MothNet, mō te te hiraka o kā pepe tuna i kā pūnaha hauropi, ā, mō te take he tauira pai te ...

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INTERACTIVE

Universal element formation

Elements are formed deep within the cores of certain types of star. Find out more in this interactive.

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INTERACTIVE

Te iwa o Matariki

Matariki is the name for the cluster of stars that signals the beginning of the Māori new year. Drag and drop each star's label to its location in the star cluster.

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SLIDESHOW

Picturebooks for Matariki – slideshow

This slideshow, from the webinar Picturebooks for Matariki, provides additional support for the video tutorial. Use the Slideshow menu for further options, including view full screen, and go here ...

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