METRONEWS
© New Zealand Broadcasting School 2024

by New Zealand Broadcasting School students

Under the light of an inflatable moon

Science

Jen Black
Victoria Stevens
Black and White Moon
Moon  Victoria Stevens

The Canterbury Museum has a new hands-on exhibition that explores the moon’s past, present and future. 

The ‘Our Moon: Then, Now and Beyond’ exhibition opened on July 4 after it was on tour, last in the Nelson Provincial Museum, and will remain open until November 8.

The exhibition showcased the space race which led to humans landing on the moon for the first time in 1969.

Familairise yourself with cultural myths about the moon, the first map of the lunar surface, and other cool history facts. 

History of the Moon
History of the Moon Victoria Stevens

 

It allows you to relive the moon landing from a replica 1960s living room or from the spaceship that launched into space.

It is a learning experience with interactive parts including; discovering your moon weight, listening to the Apollo 11 moon landing through a 1960s radio, and moving the moon around the earth's axis.

British artist, Luke Jerram, created a four metre inflatable replica of the moon that is lit from within, printed with High-resolution NASA image.

As you step inside, Hannah Beehre’s Tunnel artwork encaptures you using painted velvet covered in led lights and a mirrored floor to create an experience that makes it feel like you are walking through space. 

In conjunction with the exhibition, storytellers read their favourite stories under the light of the inflatable moon every second Friday from 10 am to 10:30 am. The stories are targeted towards preschool aged children, but all ages are welcome.  

Eric Dahlstrom and Emeline Paat-Dahlstrom, co-founders of the SpaceBase will run a session discussing what they have learned about the moon since the Apollo missions and future plans to send robots and humans to the moon.

SpaceBase is an impact organisation collaborating with the NZ space community to create educational programmes.  

Their presentation will be held at the Canterbury Museum at 6:00pm on September 9.

Entrance v3