Tūhura Tuarangi
Tūhura Tuarangi – Aotearoa in Space explores New Zealand’s deep connections to space, from our earliest Polynesian navigators to the amazing space technologies and world-leading research developed right here in Aotearoa.
The showcase is packed with hands-on interactives to play, build, launch, and explode with your whole whānau.
Build a satellite, launch a rocket, and see how rocket fuel can be created from water. Get up close with four-billion-year-old meteorites, recreate the astronomical cycles of our solar system, and hold part of a secret Russian spacecraft. We even offer virtual reality experiences where you can take your first giant leaps into space and explore our entire solar system and beyond!
As part of the showcase, you can also share your hopes and dreams for what Aotearoa’s future in space might look like —and how YOU can be a part of telling our space story.
Since launching at the Museum in October 2022, Tūhura Tuarangi has travelled nationwide and earned recognition as a winner of the international science engagement competition Falling Walls: Engage. It was also a finalist for the esteemed SCANZ Excellence in Science Communication Award in 2023.
Previous Locations:
2022
19 Sept – 28 Oct: Dunedin (Tūhura Otago Museum)
31 Oct – 1 Nov: Bluff (Te Rau Aroha Marae)
2 Nov – 5 Nov: Invercargill (James Hargest High School)
10 Nov – 11 Nov: Oamaru (Pembroke Primary School)
21 Nov – 22 Nov: Cromwell (Goldfields Primary School)
23 Nov – 25 Nov: Wānaka (Mount Aspiring College)
1 Dec – 18 Dec: Queenstown (iFLY Indoor Skydiving Foyer)
22 Dec – 29 Jan: Ashburton (Ashburton Museum)
2023
30 Jan – 9 Feb: Rolleston (Te Ara Ātea Library)
10 Feb – 27 Feb: Christchurch (Tūranga Central Library)
12 Mar – 13 Mar: Greymouth (Greymouth High School Hall)
14 Mar – 15 Mar: Hokitika (Westland High School Hall)
16 Mar – 17 Mar: Westport (Buller High School Hall)
29 Mar – 1 Apr: Blenheim (Marlborough Girls’ College Hall)
7 Apr – 14 May: Wellington (Space Place)
18 May – 20 May: Tūrangi (Tongariro School Hall)
21 May – 8 Jun: Hamilton (Hamilton Central Library)
10 Jun – 18 Jun: Rotorua (Te Aka Mauri, Rotorua Library)
20 Jun – 27 June: Tauranga (He Puna Manawa, Tauranga City Library)
1 Jul – 30 Jul: Auckland (MOTAT)
2 Aug – 12 Aug: Kaitaia (Te Ahu Museum)
14 Aug – 29 Aug: Whangārei (Whangārei Central Library)
2 Sep – 31 Oct: Palmerston North (Te Manawa Museum)
4 Nov – 7 Jan: Napier (National Aquarium of New Zealand)
2024
11 Jan – 11 Mar: Taupō (Taupō Museum)
20 Mar – 23 Mar: Auckland (ASB Polyfest)
17 Apr – 13 May: Gisborne (HB Williams Memorial Library)
14 May: Whāngārā (Te Kura o Whāngārā)
15 May: Māhia (Te Māhia School)
21 May – 23 May: Wellington (The Beehive)
31 May – 11 Jul: Kaikōura (Kaikōura District Library)
13 Jul – Aug: Takapō (Dark Sky Project)
2 Sept – 21 Sept: Dunedin (Tūhura Otago Museum)