Latest news with #Otago
RNZ News
a day ago
- Entertainment
- RNZ News
A Regal Sonic Tonic
This audio is not downloadable due to copyright restrictions. King Charles and Queen Camilla. Photo: Chris Jackson / POOL / AFP RNZ Concert's Bryan Crump marks Kings Birthday with a sonic montage of music and soundbites from the RNZ website and our archive Ngā Taonga Sound and Vision, all linked in some way to King Charles III, or to royalty in general. If you'd like to know more about each of the soundbites from the archives, you'll find a link to that item's page on the Ngā Taonga website, along with its reference number. These are the musical tracks and the soundbites in the order in which they play in the recording above. Bell ringers celebrate the birth of Prince Charles on November 14th 1948: Ngā Taonga Sound and Vision 147707 Students of Lawrence District High School, Otago, shout "three cheers" for the new prince. Mobile broadcasting Unit, November 1948: Ngā Taonga Sound and Vision 5826 Music: Handel; Zadok the Priest. Choir of Kings College Cambridge, Academy of Ancient Music, conducted by Stephen Cleobury. Savage, Co-founder and chair of "New Zealand Republic" speaking on RNZ National Queens Birthday Monday, June 2017 (RNZ Website) Not everyone's a fan. An (anti) royal protest. Photo: SEBASTIEN BOZON / AFP Music: Matlock/Lydon/Cook/Jones; God save the Queen (Sung by Nouvelle Vague) Morning Report item on activist Dun Mihaka objecting to a photograph of his bare backside protest against Prince Charles in 1983, being used in a British car ad. July 1988: Ngā Taonga Sound and Vision 56997 Prince Charles is introduced to a Youth Rally in Auckland during a visit in 1970: Ngā Taonga Sound and Vision 24118 Music: Age Pryor; King of You All (sung by Age Pryor and Tessa Rain Music: Jarryl Wirth; Charlie's Getting Married at Last (sung by Men of Harlich) Morning Report item on Kiri Te Kanawa preparing to sing at the wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer, 1981: Ngā Taonga Sound and Vision 24540 King Charles; maybe he'll be listening in? Photo: Apple Music Music: Handel; Let the Bright Seraphim. Kiri Te Kanawa (soprano) Crispian Steel Perkins (trumpet) English Chamber Orchestra. Footage of the Prince and Princess of Wales visit to Waitangi, including Sir Kingi Ihaka's waiata "Nau mai! Piki mai!. A joint live broadcast by Radio Northland and the Maori broadcasting team, Te Reo o Aotearoa: Ngā Taonga Sound and Vision 47577 Prince Charles, Prince of Wales, and Diana, Princess of Wales, visit the Bay of Islands, New Zealand, 29th April 1983. (Photo by John Shelley Collection/Avalon/Getty Images) Photo: Getty Images Australian broadcaster and writer Clive James remembers Princess Diana during an interview with Kim Hill, May 2015 (RNZ Website) Music: Tavener; Song for Athene. Choir of Kings College Cambridge. Prince Charles speaks at a state banquet given in his honour in Wellington in 1981: Ngā Taonga Sound and Vision 17443 Music: Hank Snow; I'm Moving On (sung by Elvis Presley). RNZ News reader Marama Te Pole, reads bulletin on death on Queen Elizabeth II, from RNZ Checkpoint, September 8th 2022 (RNZ Website). Music: Billy Joel; And so it Goes (sung by the Kings Singers) Morning Report item by Taranaki reporter Robin Martin on royal fan Barbara Larsen, getting ready for the coronation of King Charles III. May 2023 (RNZ Website) Music: Walton; Crown Imperial March, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, Andrew Litton. Music: Joel Little/Ella Yelich-O'Connor; Royals (sung by Lorde). Even a King deserves a hug. Charles is embraced by members of the Black Ferns rugby team. Photo: AFP
RNZ News
a day ago
- Climate
- RNZ News
Dazzling aurora scenes delight as strong displays seen from many places
Photographers braved the cold on Sunday night to capture colourful aurora images, with a bright active display visible even from some places in the North Island. Photo: Supplied/ Grant Birley If you missed out on the aurora light show that lit up southern lights on Sunday night, you might have another chance, as night falls on King's Birthday Monday. Aurora Australis, the colourful natural phenomenon also called the southern lights, put on a strong display visible in the night sky across many parts of New Zealand on Sunday night, prompting photographers to set up their tripods during the largely cloudless but cold night, to capture the lights. Astronomer and Otago Museum director, Dr Ian Griffin, told RNZ the spectacular display was unusual as it was seen further north than usual. "Last night's clear skies across the country gave everybody a really good chance to see what I think is one of the greatest shows on earth." "Normally, displays like this you can see most easily from southern New Zealand, but my understanding is a lot of people in the North Island last night got a good show, too," Griffin said. Aurora is the result of material being ejected from the sun toward Earth entering our atmosphere, where it reacts with particles at the Earth's geomagnetic poles. This creates the eerie glowing lights that can be seen in the sky. Aurora fans are hopeful the show might still be visible after dark on King's Birthday Monday, too. Griffin said this latest burst of aurora appeared after a strong explosion on the sun: "It was quite a strong explosion that threw a whole bunch of material towards the earth." "Fingers crossed it might persist until darkness tonight [Monday], and we might get another evening as well." Aurora are best seen using cameras lenses that are more sensitive than our eyes, but sometimes - like last night - are strong enough to be seen with the naked eye too. Griffin advised those hoping to get a glimpse of the lights to go to a dark spot, away from manmade lights and towns, with a good view of the stars. He said New Zealanders were seeing more auroras than normal at the moment. "We're quite a long way from the really active area of the aurora," Griffin said. "And it's only at times near solar maximum that we get these displays like we had last night, when they were overhead." Grant Birley took these photos of the aurora, from Lake Ellesmere, on Sunday night. Photo: Supplied/ Grant Birley And the prospects for King's Birthday Monday were looking hopeful. Forecasters at the US government's Space Weather Prediction Centre [ said that between 3pm and 6pm NZT on Monday global magnetic conditions - referred to as Kp - could reach as high was nearly 8Kp, and could remain above 6Kp until midnight NZT (midday UTC). At levels of 6Kp and above, aurora move much further across the globe than just the North and South Poles where they are more usually confined to, and can "become quite bright and active", the agency said . At 8Kp, that intensifies and even more bright, and more places may be able to see them: "These are the events that create the best aurora and the extended auroral oval will be observable by the most people," they said. Conditions are promising for auroras for the next six to 12 months, Dr Griffin said, because the sun's magnetic activity is in the most active phase of its 11-year cycle. A group with a bonfire are captured at Wainuiomata coast, on Sunday night, in front of the aurora. Photo: Supplied/ Dan Bailey Winter offers advantages for aurora spotters because the night is dark for longer. But New Zealand has a good geographic position when it comes to aurora spotting, and it gives us good opportunities through the rest of the year too, Griffin said. "One of the coolest thing about New Zealand is it's pretty much the only place in the world where you can watch an aurora in the middle of summer, wearing shorts and jandals." Australia & New Zealand are getting some nice aurora right now, here's the view from Queenstown, NZ! We are currently at G2 storm level (we did hit Hp30=8 earlier). Solar wind speed is currently very high (900+ km/s), but Bt and Bz are not very favourable. We are still in the… On Sunday night some Australian aurora fans also got a glimpse of the lights, which are rarely spotted across the ditch. ABC reported spotters as far north as Tamworth north of Sydney, in New South Wales had seen the lights. Photographers usually use special astrophotography settings on their cameras to capture aurora, but Sunday's display was also visible to the naked eye, and would have looked closer to this. Photo: Supplied/ Dan Bailey Cressida Toorenburg told the ABC she had seen the natural light show from East Devonport, in Tasmania, after the clouds cleared away. "We sat for half an hour in the hope that the clouds would move away and then wow," she said. "There was Lady Aurora! It was breathtaking - you could see her with the naked eye, but much bigger and brighter through the screen on my phone." Toorenburg said she has lived in the area for seven years and never seen an aurora as dazzling. "The colours were so beautiful and vibrant," she said. From Lake Ellesmere on Sunday. Photo: Supplied/ Grant Birley - RNZ/ ABC Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
2 days ago
- Business
- RNZ News
A warmer winter is on its way, NIWA says
By John Lewis , Otago Daily Times Climate scientists are predicting winter 2025 could be warmer than usual. Photo: Tom Kitchin Electricity bills may deliver less of a hammering this winter if NIWA's outlook for the next few months comes to fruition. It shows temperatures from June to August are "very likely" to be warmer than average this winter, meaning fewer cold snaps and frosts than usual. NIWA National Climate Centre forecasting principal scientist Chris Brandolino said El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO) conditions in the tropical Pacific remained neutral at present, but there were "residual signals" that indicated weak La Nina conditions were persisting. Occasional La Nina-like atmospheric patterns might still emerge over the next three months, he said. "However, international guidance indicates about a 70 percent chance for the tropical Pacific to remain in an Enso-neutral state over the next three-month period." He said higher-than-normal atmospheric pressure was expected to the east of the country, leading to northeasterly flow anomalies that might shift to a more northwesterly direction towards the end of the three-month period. That means seasonal air temperatures are expected to be above average across all New Zealand regions for the winter season. "While cold snaps and frosts will occur, they are expected to be less frequent than usual." On the West Coast, Southern Alps and foothills, inland Otago, and Southland, temperatures were very likely to be above average, he said. Rainfall totals, soil moisture levels and river flows are about equally likely to be near normal or above normal. Temperatures were also very likely to be above average along coastal Otago, he said. "Rainfall totals are most likely to be in the near normal range, and soil moisture levels and river flows are about equally likely to be near normal or above normal." Brandolino said for the remainder of the calendar year, ENSO-neutral conditions were expected to persist. "The guidance available, however, suggests the possibility for La Nina conditions to return by summer 2025-2026." La Nina can bring more northeasterly winds to New Zealand, leading to drier conditions in the south and southwest of the South Island. - This story was first published by Otago Daily Times
RNZ News
3 days ago
- Climate
- RNZ News
Power outage in Southland continues, nearly 400 homes remain without electricity
Southland power supplier, PowerNet say nearly 400 homes in the region are still without power. Photo: Supplied / PowerNet Southland power supplier, PowerNet says nearly 400 homes in the region are still without power. The electricity network company on Saturday said three of its networks had been badly disrupted by stormy weather overnight, and warned affected customers to prepare for extended blackouts to last for days. They were OtagoNet, Electricity Invercargill and The Power Company, which services Southland. At that time, PowerNet said some customers could remain without power into Monday and people who were medically dependent on electricity should plan accordingly. By 8.45pm Saturday, 1600 properties were still without power, reduced from about 8000 customers earlier in the weekend. A PowerNet spokesperson said staff had worked throughout Saturday in difficult conditions to restore power to most of the impacted homes. They said it was expected at least 80 percent of the remaining homes would be reconnected by the end of today. The strong winds on Friday and into Saturday had kept firefighters busy in the lower South Island, including calls for help with roofs lifting off houses and fallen trees. MetService forecasters issued strong wind warnings, including for gusts up to 130km/h in places. Elsewhere, a heavy swell warning remains in place for parts of Wairarapa from 1am this Morning, and is expected to last until late Monday. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
3 days ago
- Climate
- RNZ News
Power cuts in Southland, Otago could run into Monday
Strong winds have been making it difficult for lines crews responding to power outages in the lower South Island. Photo: Supplied/ MetService Extended power blackouts are affecting thousands of people in parts of the lower South Island, after strong winds, and for some, the outages will continue for the next two days into Monday. On Saturday, electricity network company PowerNet said three of its networks were badly disrupted by stormy weather overnight. They were OtagoNet, Electricity Invercargill and The Power Company, which services Southland. PowerNet said teams worked to restore power, but faced challenging conditions, and the safety of crews came first. Some customers could remain without power into Monday and people who were medically dependent on electricity should plan accordingly. Strong winds overnight and into Saturday kept firefighters busy in the lower South Island , including calls for help with roofs lifting off houses and fallen trees. MetService forecasters issued strong wind warnings, with gusts up to 130kph in places, although the orange warning was due to expire at 3pm on Saturday. In the North Island, an orange strong wind warning for Hawke's Bay, Napier and down to the Tararua District was still in place until 10pm Sunday, and a heavy swell warning was in place for parts of Wairarapa, from 1am Sunday until late Monday. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
