Fab and Groovy

This was how the future was supposed to be baby.

Nanu Nanu

The Futuro has landed in Christchurch. We saw this in the botanic gardens today. Designed in 1968 this was supposed to be the house of the future. They caused quite a media stir in their day and there was even a factory in Christchurch. They didn't catch on for obvious reasons, they are quite small inside and there is nowhere to park the jetpack.

Goodbye

As I mentioned the comet is fading and the weather forecast is bad for tomorrow so I don't know if we will get another view.

It was a privilege to see a 'once in a lifetime' comet. Especially after seeing Hale-Bopp back in the UK. Baby James woke up briefly and I pointed him at it. One day I will show him these photos and tell him he was there.

I think my photos came out OK but if you want to see a superb shot of this comet, you should check out the one taken by Rudi Vavra.

So farewell Comet McNaught. Hopefully someone will be watching next time you visit.

Two Tails

This close-up of the nucleus shows the two tails clearly. The gas tail is the bright jet moving upwards. This points directly away from the sun and is caused by the solar wind. The fainter dust tail is the one pointing at 45 degrees to the gas tail. This shows the trajectory of the comet.

The elongation of the nucleus and the background stars is caused by the earths rotation during the 15 second exposure.

Another View

Comet McNaught is fading and the moon is waxing so I decided to get another view while we still can. Also I wanted Tracy to see it as she missed out on Monday.

The weather in Chch was overcast but a check of the satellite feed showed a break in the clouds near Tai Tapu. We loaded James into the truck and headed out into the night. Within half an hour we had mostly clear skies. We parked up on the side of a quiet country lane and watched the comet descend over the next hour and a half.

There were no street lights for miles around, the night was mild and most importantly no wind to shake the tripod.

A Tall Tail

The most striking features of this comet are its brightness (apart from the sun and moon, it is the brightest object in the sky) and its size. The tail stretches over 10 degrees across the sky. It is over 30 million kilometres long.

This photo was taken with a 38mm lens which illustrates how much of the sky the comet covers. I had to switch to iso 400 to capture the fine striae at the end of the tail so the image is a bit grainy.

Well I hope you all got a chance to see this spectacular sight. It has left the northern hemisphere now but we should be able to see it for a week or so in New Zealand before the moon becomes too bright.

If you do miss out, don't worry you can catch it on its return in the year 87,006.

Up Close and Personal

This shot shows some structure in the nucleus.

Goodness, Gracious....

Great Balls of Fire!

The comet was supposed to be visible at 9:30 but it was hidden by the huge nor'west arch overhead. Lots of people gave up and went home. I drove further up the road to look for a quiet spot away from car headlights.

As I rounded a corner, I got my first glimpse of the comet. It looked so close that it appeared to punch through the clouds, like a rocket re-entering the atmosphere.

I set up my tripod and took the following images with a 15 second exposure.

Comet Watchers

A gusty warm nor'wester was blowing and an expansive arch of clouds stretched overhead from the Alps in the distance. Just below them a narrow gap of clear sky. Just where the comet was expected to appear.

All along the road there were parked cars and crowds of waiting people.

Sunset From the Port Hills

Tonight I drove up into the port hills and saw this wonderful sunset. But that wasn't what I came to see. Comet McNaught is visible over New Zealand at the moment. It is the brightest comet in over 70 years and I wanted to get a good look at it.

Thank You Very Much

Chch was heaving today. Loads of tourists in the arts centre. Each summer chch hosts the International Buskers Festival. Its a great laugh with comedians, jugglers, singers, magicians, acrobats: the lot! All for the price of a couple of coins in the collection tin.

This robotic Elvis statue was wowing the crowds on a sunny (yes it was actually sunny) afternoon.

Who's a Pretty Boy Then?

This cheeky young kea took an interest in us. He even tried to take a chunk out of my boots.

Devil's Punchbowl

James fell asleep by the time we reached the falls. He doesn't mind the rain at all.

Another Walk in the Rain

Another wet weekend and here we are again trekking through the New Zealand bush. This time it's the Devil's Punchbowl track near Arthur's Pass.

Maruia Falls

The week is over and our first holiday with James is over. We drove back to Chch via the Lewis pass and stopped to stretch our legs at Maruia.

The falls were formed by an earthquake back in 1929 and after all the rain we have had they were an impressive sight.

Yet More Ferns

See I told you I loved ferns. The circle track at Pelorous Bridge is a great short walk. It only takes 40 minutes but has a back-country feel about it.

More Ferns

James seems to like ferns too.

Ferns

I love ferns. They have a primaeval quality.

Guess what? it's raining again so we drove back to Pelorous Bridge to do a couple of bush walks. As I said before, I like walking through the bush in the rain and this time we walked through a very humid, dank forest. I loved it.

That's My Boy

James had another dip in the sea today. Once he got over the fact that it was not as warm as his bath he really started to enjoy splashing around. It was great fun for me too.

Another Day at the Beach

Today was sunny again so we went back to the beach. I love this photo of James. He looks like an old man in a deckchair with a knotted hanky on his head.

This is the Life

James had a little paddle. Tracy and I had our first swim of the summer.

James's First Swimsuit

We put a small tent up on the beach so that Tracy could hide from the ozone hole. It is also handy as a changing room. James got his first swim suit for xmas

Sunshine!

Sun at last. We had a quick breakfast at the smokehouse (excellent smoked fish) and spent the day at Kaiteriteri. This is just outside the national park but it has road access so it is ususally quite busy.

There is a lagoon behind the beach which fills at high tide and the entrance is a nice safe warm place to swim.

Going Bush

Overall a very pleasant day. The rain was persistent but warm, the tuis were singing and the rata was in flower.

Anapai Bay

At Anapai Bay we had a picnic in the rain which made me very nostalgic for my childhood summer holidays. I even took James for a paddle. The beach was deserted and it was gorgeous despite the weather.

At the Beach

I got this back-pack for xmas and it is proving to be a very useful present. James likes riding high up where he can see everything and it can go all the places a pram can't.

Abel Tasman in the Rain

We woke up to rain again! In the sunshine the beaches of Abel Tasman are glorious, glass-green water rolling onto golden sands. In the rain the beaches don't have quite the same impact. Oh well, they do look kind of moody, atmospheric even.

Fortunately the bush comes alive when its wet. The colours become vibrant, and the smell of the vegetation and the sound of the rain make a bush walk a good alternative to a swim. We drove through driving rain to Totaranui beach and walked part of the Abel Tasman track to Anapai Bay.

Getting In Touch With Nature

Luckily, James doesn't seem to mind the rain.

River Rai

We stopped for lunch at Pelorous Bridge and went for a short walk in the rain.

Queen Charlotte Sound

We drove from Blenheim to Motueka via the Marlborough Sounds. It rained all the way.

Horses

We drove through a field full of horses. At Molesworth, mustering is still done on horseback.

Picnic

We had a lovely picnic by the river. Everywhere the ground was was covered in blue flowers.

Summer Holidays

Time for our summer holidays. We are off to Abel Tasman for a week at the beach. This is a bit of a risk as we are currently experiencing the worst summer on record. Oh well the first day was good. We drove from Chch to blenheim via Molesworth Station. This is the largest farm in New Zealand and the road through is only open for a couple of months a year. Its just a gravel track but well maintained and the drive is very scenic. This is a view of the river Acheron.

Red Like Dad

That's my son. Half Cumbrian, half Scouser. 100% kiwi (but Dad will remind him of his roots).