The McLellan telescope building and dome, looking south over the Mackenzie Basin. Photo: Fraser Gunn, April 2007.
The Mt John University Observatory at Tekapo is celebrating its 50th birthday this year. And a lot has changed since it opened in 1965. From humble beginnings it has evolved into a premier astronomical research facility. And now it also plays host to a thriving astro-tourism industry with a million people visiting in the past ten years. John Hearnshaw is an Emeritus Professor of Astronomy at the University of Canterbury. He has spent 25 years as the director of the observatory. And, in celebration of its birthday, he's just co-authored a book with Alan Gilmore, called Mt John – The First 50 Years: A celebration of half a century of optical astronomy at the University of Canterbury.
John Hearnshaw at Mt John, February 2014. Photo: John Hearnshaw.
The MOA dome at dusk, Mt John, March 2011. Photo: Fraser Gunn
Stars and the Milky Way are reflected in the calm waters of Lake Alexandrina, near Mt John. Photo: Fraser Gunn, 11 June 2013
All photos from Mt John – The First 50 Years by John Hearnshaw and Alan Gilmore, published by Canterbury University Press, 2015.
