Whakatane Astronomical Society
The Whakatane Astronomical Society is a voluntary, non-profit society for people interested in amateur astronomy in the Whakatane District of New Zealand. The society was founded in September 1960, and maintains a small observatory in Whakatane, which has been operating continuously since 1964.[1] The society is affiliated with the Royal Astronomical Society of New Zealand.[2]
Formation | January 1, 1963 |
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Type | NGO |
Location |
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Coordinates | 37.956642°S 176.999544°E |
Region served | Eastern Bay of Plenty, New Zealand |
President | Norman Izett |
Affiliations | Royal Astronomical Society of New Zealand |
Website |
The Society's main fund raising activity is the running of observing nights on Tuesday and Friday evenings, where members of the public pay a small fee to view the sky using one or more of the society's telescopes at the observatory, under the guidance of a society member. Similar evenings can also be run for larger/school groups, with prior arrangement.
Equipment
The Society's observatory houses three main telescopes:
- A 350mm Celestron Schmidt-Cassegrain
- A 250mm Meade Instruments Schmidt-Cassegrain with GoTo Control
- A custom built 150mm refractor, equipped with a solar filter
References
- Whakatane Astronomical Society. "Sky of Plenty". Retrieved 2010-03-09.
- Royal Astronomical Society of New Zealand. "Affiliated Societies". Retrieved 2010-03-09.