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Skywatch: Lyrids meteor shower will peak in late April

By Chad Kalepa Baybayan and Emily Peavy, ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center of Hawaii on March 31, 2019
• Updated on  April 1, 2019 at 7:29 pm
By Chad Kalepa Baybayan and Emily Peavy, ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center of Hawaii Posted on March 31, 2019
• Updated on  April 1, 2019 at 7:29 pm
April welcomes the spring starline, Kaiwikuamo‘o (the Backbone). Read More

Skywatch: Program grants Hawaiian names to celestial objects

By Chad Kalepa Baybayan and Emily Peavy, ʻImiloa Astronomy Center of Hawaii on February 24, 2019
• Updated on  February 23, 2019 at 10:36 pm
By Chad Kalepa Baybayan and Emily Peavy, ʻImiloa Astronomy Center of Hawaii Posted on February 24, 2019
• Updated on  February 23, 2019 at 10:36 pm
Kekaomakali‘i, the Canoe Bailer, is now filling the western region of the sky. In this starline we can make out the recognizable stars that make up Kaheiheionakeiki, also well known as Orion the Hunter. Read More

Skywatch: Night sky provides stellar laboratories

By Chad Kalepa Baybayan and Emily Peavy, ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center of Hawai‘i on January 27, 2019
• Updated on  January 28, 2019 at 6:12 pm
By Chad Kalepa Baybayan and Emily Peavy, ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center of Hawai‘i Posted on January 27, 2019
• Updated on  January 28, 2019 at 6:12 pm
Seeing the first of the four star families is a reminder that a new year has begun. Read More

Skywatch: Earth will be at closest point to sun in January

By Chad Kalepa Baybayan and Emily Peavy, ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center of Hawai‘i on January 7, 2019
• Updated on  January 7, 2019 at 5:12 pm
By Chad Kalepa Baybayan and Emily Peavy, ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center of Hawai‘i Posted on January 7, 2019
• Updated on  January 7, 2019 at 5:12 pm
Once again we return to the first of our four star families, Kekaomakali‘i, the Bailer of Makali‘i, as it makes its nightly east-to-west progression across the horizon. Read More
 

Orionid meteor shower to light up night skies

By Chad Kalepa Baybayan and Emily Peavy, ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center of Hawai‘i on September 30, 2018
• Updated on  September 29, 2018 at 10:22 pm
By Chad Kalepa Baybayan and Emily Peavy, ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center of Hawai‘i Posted on September 30, 2018
• Updated on  September 29, 2018 at 10:22 pm
The twin stars in the bucket of the Little Dipper, Holopuni (Kochab) and Hoku­mau (Pherkad) are good clues for determining latitude in the southern hemisphere. Read More

September skies offer views of Saturn, Mars

By Chad Kalepa Baybayan and Emily Peavy, ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center of Hawai‘i Posted on August 26, 2018
The four star families are modern Hawaiian inventions that have been used consistently by the voyaging community for 25 years. Read More
 

Jupiter, Venus to shine brightly in June sky

By Kalepa Baybayan and Emily Peavy, ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center of Hawai’i Posted on May 27, 2018
As spring turns to summer, the months of May and June have provided Polynesian mariners the best season for making a Tahiti-to-Hawaii Pacific passage. Read More

Hokule‘a visits Big Island as planets shine brightly

By Chad Kalepa Baybayan and Emily Peavy, ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center of Hawaii Posted on April 29, 2018 • Updated on  April 29, 2018 at 2:04 pm
Spring provides the mariner with excellent conditions for tropical passages between the northern and southern hemispheres. Read More

Skywatch: Spring brings new starline

By Chad Kalepa Baybayan and Emily Peavy, ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center of Hawai“i Posted on March 25, 2018
On March 20 the sun crossed north over the equator in an event called the equinox, a juncture when daylight and nighttime are about equal in length, heralding the beginning of spring in the Northern Hemisphere. The Hawaiian word associated with this season is Kupulau (Sprouting Leaf). Read More

Using the stars to make landfall

By Chad Kalepa Baybayan and Emily Peavy, ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center of Hawaii Posted on February 25, 2018
This month we focus on the third and final skill set essential for celestial navigation. After orienting the canoe and determining the canoe’s position at sea, the final challenge becomes making landfall. Read More

Navigating by stars and nature’s clues

By Chad Kalepa Baybayan and Emily Peavy, ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center of Hawaii Posted on January 28, 2018 • Updated on  January 27, 2018 at 10:46 pm
To navigate the seas using only the stars and other clues from nature, one needs to learn three essential functions: orienting the canoe, determining the canoe’s position at sea and making landfall. Read More

Hawaiian navigation, space exploration led the way in 2017

By Chad Kalepa Baybayan and Emily Peavy ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center of Hawaii Posted on December 31, 2017 • Updated on  December 30, 2017 at 10:39 pm
From the completion of the epic voyage of the Hokule‘a to the naming of an asteroid detected from Hawaii, and the latest findings of gravitational waves in space, 2017 has been an exciting year for astronomical explorations on Earth and in space. Read More

Meteor shower coupled with supermoon to light December night sky

By Chad Kalepa Baybayan and Emily Peavy, ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center of Hawai‘i Posted on November 26, 2017 • Updated on  November 25, 2017 at 9:23 pm
Mastering any skill takes passion and a commitment of time. Once achieved, a skill can last a lifetime of practice, but it is accessible only to the master unless it is passed on to others. Read More
 

Using the star compass in oceanic wayfinding

By Chad Kalepa Baybayan and Emily Peavy, ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center of Hawai‘i Posted on October 29, 2017 • Updated on  October 28, 2017 at 7:58 pm
The beauty of the Star Compass is its natural symmetry and reflective quality, allowing the navigator to use nature’s clues to determine direction. Read More

Sun and stars’ daily trek form Hawaiian compass

By Chad Kalepa Baybayan and Emily Peavy, ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center of Hawai‘i on September 24, 2017
• Updated on  September 23, 2017 at 11:09 pm
By Chad Kalepa Baybayan and Emily Peavy, ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center of Hawai‘i Posted on September 24, 2017
• Updated on  September 23, 2017 at 11:09 pm
The recent completion of the three-year Malama Honua Worldwide Voyage by the voyaging canoe Hokule‘a underscores the timeless relevance of this indigenous system of celestial navigation. Read More

Eager star-gazers abound in islands

By Mike Shanahan, Bishop Museum on August 27, 2017
By Mike Shanahan, Bishop Museum Posted on August 27, 2017
Aloha everybody! This will be my final Skywatch article. I am delighted, and a little wistful, to announce that I have accepted a position at the Liberty Science Center in Jersey City, N.J., across from lower Manhattan. Read More

Isles will get partial view of Aug. 21 solar eclipse

By Mike Shanahan, Bishop Museum on July 30, 2017
• Updated on  July 29, 2017 at 11:02 pm
By Mike Shanahan, Bishop Museum Posted on July 30, 2017
• Updated on  July 29, 2017 at 11:02 pm
For the United States, the biggest astronomy story for 2017 is the total eclipse of the sun that occurs over much of the continental U.S. on Aug. 21. Read More

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