Look Up: New Zealand Has a New Internationally Recognised Dark-Sky Reserve

When was the last time you looked up and saw more than a handful of stars twinkling back at you? If you live in a city, chances are it coincided with the last time you got away from the metropolis and light pollution.

New Zealand is famed for its dark-sky reserves and sanctuaries, where people travel to experience some of the most incredible stargazing in the world – the South Island’s Aoraki Mackenzie, for example, forms the largest reserve of this type globally, spanning more than 4300 square kilometres.

Now another area of the country has joined the ranks, with the Wairarapa region, about an hour’s drive from Wellington, receiving formal dark-sky reserve recognition from the International Dark-Sky Association (IDA).

The Wairarapa Dark-Sky Reserve (WDSR) takes in some 3665 square kilometres, most of which is is easily accessible by vehicle or on foot for those heading along for a night’s viewing. If you’re feeling more adventurous, the Aorangi Crossing falls within the reserve. It’s a two- to three-night tramp from the Putangirua Pinnacles to Cape Palliser and its famous lighthouse.

The new certification comes after five years of work from a small group of volunteers with broad community support across the towns of Martinborough, Featherston, Greytown, and Carterton. This includes local iwi, astronomical societies and local councils.

Government agencies were also involved, including the transport department, Waka Kotahi, which amended street-lighting plans to make sure it all complied with IDA requirements; Maritime NZ, which has committed to shielding its three local lighthouses; and the Department of Conservation. Wairarapa Dark-Sky Association already has plans to expand the reserve area to include northern Wairarapa’s Masterton district, which encompasses around 5895 square kilometres.

The stars have immense cultural significance in Aotearoa and this region in particular. Celestial navigation is said to have guided legendary Polynesian explorer Kupe to Wairarapa’s shores hundreds of years ago.

Our other dark-sky regions include Aotea Great Barrier Island and Rakiura Stewart Island – both of which are dark-sky sanctuaries rather than reserves, which means they have a more fragile conservation status. According to the IDA, reserves consist of “a dark ‘core’ zone surrounded by a populated periphery where policy controls are enacted to protect the darkness of the core”.