Celestial Events

Huge thanks to and for allowing us to share our passion for the night sky with your guests at Makalali Private Game Reserve last night.

We revelled in cultural stories of the constellations, including the Southern Cross, Scorpius and Virgo, and enjoyed amazing views of the Carina Nebula, Omega Centauri and the Southern Pinwheel galaxy through our photographic telescopic on a big screen.

Contact us at [email protected] to book your own

We are very excited to introduce you to the latest member of our team, ZWO's amazing AM5 harmonic mount 🎉🎉

Portable, lightweight, super-strong and stable, this amazing piece of kit will allow us to capture even more incredible detail in deep sky objects with our William Optics scope 🪐💫

Can't wait to trial it with guests very soon 🌌🔭😍

Please have a read of our latest article for the Kruger2Canyon news

Strange new worlds - Kruger2Canyon In 1966, the Starship Enterprise first detailed its mission ‘… to explore strange new worlds, seek out new life and new civilisations…’ At the time, this was of course nothing more than science fiction but 60 years on, we are closing in on its ambitious plan.

What an honour to witness last week's aurora display in the UK with my amazing Mum 😍🌌

A couple more shots of the magical aurora seen above the UK on Friday night 😍🌌😍

Last night's solar storm was spectacular and I was lucky enough to be on the Norfolk coast to witness the stunning spectacle.

Unfortunately the clouds rolled in very soon after sunset, followed by rain...so imaging opportunities were limited, but for 45 mins or so, the sky was lit up in an amazing display of pinks and greens.

Such a shame that the British weather got in the way of what was a night for the ages, but it was a huge honour to witness the beauty of our dynamic solar system in action 😍🌠

Sony A7Riii and 20mm f1.8 lens

OCEANIC SPACE

The Lagoon Nebula, in the constellation of Sagittarius, is one of the brightest star forming regions in the night sky.

It takes centre stage in the southern hemisphere winter, rising high in the sky along with the Milky Way's core, and is visible with the naked under eye under even semi light polluted skies.

The Lagoon Nebula is just one of many such fantasical regions you can expect to explore during our Night Sky Safaris and Virtual Stargazing experiences 🌌🔭

ZWO533MC Pro
William Optics GT71
Optolong L-Extreme filter
2 hours of exposure

AMBER NECTAR

The Omega or Swan Nebula in Sagittarius is another of incredible objects coming into view as the season continues to change.

Vast swatches of dust and gas harbour countless young stars as they begin their long journey to adulthood. ⭐

Visible as a cloudy patch through standard binoculars, the area truly comes alive with long exposure photography. And takes centre stage during our Night Sky Safaris and Virtual Stargazing evenings 🔭

William Optics GT71
ZWO533MC Pro
Optolong L-Extreme filter
40 x 3min exposures

ENTER THE DRAGON

Winter has almost arrived in the southern hemisphere, and with it come some of the most spectacular regions of space to photograph.

Over the years, I have been fortunate enough to capture many nebulae and other awe inspiring areas of the night sky, but the Fighting Dragons of Ara, as it is colloquially known, is probably my favourite (thus far).

This mighty star forming region can be found over 4000 light years away in the constellation of Ara, the Altar and is nothing short of spectacular!

The dark tendrils and glowing dust paint a dramatic scene of 2 dragons engaging in a great battle over an egg. The 'egg' is a star that recently underwent an outburst of gas that is interacting with the surrounding dust.

Others see giant celestial squid, or a cosmic handshake! What do you see??

William Optics GT71
40 x 180s
ZWO 533MC Pro
Optolong L-Extreme filter

This was my last photo taken under the incredible dark skies of New Zealand's South Island.

What an adventure it has been, but I cannot wait to return to SA and continue my journey.

SPACE MOUNTAIN

The Milky Way and the Large Magellanic Cloud rising over the spectacular scenery of the Aoraki/Mackenzie dark sky reserve 🌌⛰️

Sony A7Riii
Sony 20mm f1.8

Check out our latest article, Rock Stars, in the Kruger2Canyon News 🌌✨

https://kruger2canyon.co.za/

Click on 'Read our Latest Edition'

SOLACE

It's hard to find peace and solace in our fast-paced world, but there is something humbling and soothing about sitting under dark skies and just being...

The dark skies above Mt Cook Lakeside Retreat and the Mackenzie Basin offer the perfect opportunity to find some perspective.

Sony A7iiiR
Sony 20mm f1.8

EMU RISING

Some ancient cultures saw animals in the Milky Way's dark dust lanes that block out the light of the myriad of stars behind.

One of the darkest areas lies below the Southern Cross, known as 'The Coalsack'.

In Aboriginal starlore, the coalsack forms the head and beak of a giant emu, it's neck stretching through Alpha and Beta Centauri.

At this time of year, only the head and neck are visible as the great bird rises above the horizon, but during winter, the full picture spans 3/4s of the night sky.

OPEN SPACE

An 8 pane panorama of the core of the Milky Way setting above the southern alps as seen from Mt Cook Lakeside Retreat, deep in the heart of the Mackenzie Basin, NZ

The area is set within one of the largest International Dark Sky Reserves in the world, encompassing over 4000km2 of protected night skies.

What a privilege it is to witness the cosmos from such dark skies 😍🌌

Sony A7iiiR
Sony 20mm f1.8
ISO 2000

Thanks to for publishing our latest article.

It's been a pleasure to submit monthly articles to this wonderful community for the last couple of years!

This month, read all about when and why New Year is celebrated in different cultures, and how it all pertains to people's observations of the night sky.

You can find the link here

https://kruger2canyon.co.za/

CELESTIAL ROSE

The Rosette Nebula in Monoceros, the Unicorn, is fast becoming one of my favorite objects to photograph.

It is just one of many hidden objects hiding in plain sight in the inky darkness. Looking through a telescope will reveal the central star cluster, but the surface brightness of the Nebula itself is all but invisible.

Spanning over 130 light years across, this vast cloud is a giant stellar incubator spawning countless new stars that will go on to populate the Milky Way.

With a narrowband filter, astronomical camera and multiple long exposures the area comes to life in a vivid sea of reds and pinks.

The second image is a single, unedited image and represents exactly what can be seen on our Night Sky Safaris or Virtual Stargazing sessions!

50 x 180s
ZWO533MC Pro
William Optics GT71
Sky watcher AZ-EQ6 GT
Optolong L-Extreme Filter
ASIAir Pro

THE DEEP SOUTH

The core of the Milky Way may have set for the time being, but the dark skies above the Mackenzie Basin accentuate many other amazing objects and patterns of stars.

The Southern Cross, Diamond and False Cross asterisms, the Coal Sack, Eta Carina nebula and Magellanic Clouds are all easily visible in the southern skies, and scan of this area of the Milky Way with binoculars will reveal countless more sparkling star clusters and glowing areas of cosmic gas ✨🌌

The deep south skies are truly a sight to behold 😍

Sony A7Riii
F1.8
13secs

RAINBOW SKIES

2 nights ago, the Southern Lights lit up the sky in a spectacular display.

Recent solar storm activity created a huge green arc across New Zealand's skies that was clearly visible to the naked eye.

Some high cloud cover seemed to accentuate the effect with the camera picking up hues of green, yellow, pink and red spanning around 180 degrees of horizon. What an experience! 🌌🏔️🤩😨

Taken from Mt Cook Lakside Retreat in the Mackenzie region of South Island.

Sony A7iiiR and 20mm
13s, ISO3200, f2

THE EYE OF GOD

Cloudy weather of late has limited imaging opportunities but I was recently able to capture around 90mins of data on the Helix Nebula in Aquarius.

Known colloquially as 'The Eye of God', this ocular marvel is one of the closest known planetary Nebula to Earth, at only 650 light years away.

Planetary nebulae are created when small stars stop fusing hydrogen in their core and bleed their atmosphere into space. The scolded core left behind is known as a White Dwarf. The same fate will befall our Sun when it comes to end of its life.

The gas visible in this photo spans a region about 2.5 light years across, but it's low surface brightness makes it a hard object to observe. A small, diffuse ring, about the half the size of a full moon is visible in binoculars under very dark skies.

This image was made possible by using a narrowband filter to accentuate the gaseous envelope around the remaining stellar core.

Taken onsite at Mt Cook Lakeside Retreat in New Zealand

Explore Scientific AR152
ZWO533MC
Optolong L-Extreme filter
30 x 180s

GLACIAL REMAINS

The Mackenzie Basin was carved out by glacial action over thousands of years, and is scattered with huge boulders left behind after the melt.

These megalithic 'erratics' litter the landscape and offer the perfect foreground against which to emphasize the size and scale of the galactic arms of the Milky Way.

Photo taken at deep in the heart of the Aoraki/Mackenzie Dark Sky Reserve

Sony A7iiiR
ISO3200
10 x 15s

SOUTHERN LIGHTS

After a few months of frustrating weather conditions, I was finally able to capture my first photograph of the Aurora Australis!

These incredible colours, seemingly superimposed on to the setting Milky Way, are caused by the solar wind interacting with the gases in our atmosphere.

Though usually invisible to the naked eye, this night it was possible to see the white shafts of light stretching into the sky just after dark.

I'm super excited to finally witness and capture this fairytale-esque fantasy scene from Mt Cook Lakeside Retreat 🌌🌌

Sony A7iiiR
10 secs
ISO2500

RED MIST

The Eagle Nebula is home to the iconic Pillars of Creation, towering steeples of dust and gas that are spawning countless new stars within.

The height of the left hand 'pillar' is over 4 light years: the same distance from the Sun to our closest stellar neighbour!

This was a quick test shot of only 10 minutes of data but is more than enough exposure to showcase the beauty of this enormous stellar incubator.

Taken on site at

ZWO533MC
Optolong L-Extreme filter
ES AR152

MILKY TRAILS

Small star trail taken over a period of about 90mins as the Milky Way sank towards the horizon.

Despite the limited window, it's still more than enough time to see the rotation of the Earth manifested in the movement of the night sky 🌎 🌌

Photo taken at in the heart of the Aoraki/Mackenzie international dark sky reserve.

PRETTY IN PINK

The Carina Nebula is a glorious area of the southern night sky, encapsulating the true essence and beauty of the cosmos.

This image is a single 30 second photo taken with a Sony A7iiiR and no filter through the 6" telescope at Mt Cook Lakeside Retreat 🔭🔭

The pristene, pure skies above this world renowned International Dark Sky Reserve are truly a sight to behold 😍🌌

PINING FOR SPACE

A resolute pine tree stands proud and watches the Milky Way descend towards the horizon.

Taken from outside the Pukaki Wine Cellar Observatory at Mt Cook Lakeside Retreat.

Sony A7iiiR
10 x images stacked
13s @ ISO6400

FIREWORKS

The Tarantula Nebula in the Large Magellanic Cloud is an incredible object only visible from the Southern hemisphere 🌌

Not only is it a spectacularly beautiful region of space, but it is also 170,000 light years away! 🚀🚀

It never ceases to amaze me what can be captured with amateur equipment and limited exposures. This image is a culmination of only 15mins of data!

To think that the photons that hit the camera sensor left this object when Homo sapiens were beginning to walk the Earth is mind blowing 😱

Taken at the Pukaki Observatory at in the IDA Mackenzie Dark Sky Reserve

ZWO533MC
Optolong L-Extreme Filter
Scientific Explorer AR152
DSS and PS

SKY BRIDGE

"Space isn't remote at all. It's only an hour's drive away, if your car could go straight upwards."

- Sir Fred Hoyle, Astronomer

Sony A7iiiR
Composite image

After a long break from deep sky imaging, it was great to get back in the saddle!

After much technical faffing, I was finally able to get my kit talking to the scope at Mt Cook Lakeside Retreat's Pukaki Observatory and take some test shots.

This image of the Lagoon Nebula is from a stack of 4 x 30s images - just 2 minutes of exposure, taken during an 85% moon phase!

Looking forward to capturing more data on this target, and more!

AR152
ZWO533MC
Optolong L-Extreme
DSS & PS