A slow start this morning as I have had terrible diarrhea overnight. However we make a cut lunch and by 11.30 we are off down the road to the Mount John walkway. It was 1 hour slog uphill all the way but we are there for the 1pm tour.
Our guide is a young French astronomer. First the site was used by the Americans but they also used it for spying and eventually had to leave. He showed us the old telescope 1936 , the mount which allows the telescope to track across the night sky so the stars don't blur is as important as the focal length and aperture.
Then we see the B and C telescope which clearly demonstrates the tracking system of the mount based on the celestial equator with delineation angles.
Lastly we see the MOA telescope and apparently all we need to remember is that M is for multi and this takes 10 images and pieces them together. Neither of these last two machines have you looking through an eyepiece as it is all computerized. Our French guide tells us that from the Northern Hemisphere the Milky Way is only visible low on the horizon and the Magellan Clouds of other galaxies are not visible at all. He says if you are in Paris you are lucky to see 5 stars.
Lastly we look through the solar scope and the sun is an orange orb with whiskers. . the solar flares. There is also a telescope on Mount Cook.
We eat our home packed lunch and start the trek down -this is more painful on our knees than going up! We are grateful for a swim in the hot pools despite the $43 price tag, and I am also grateful that I have organised Duncan to cook tea!
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