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THE RAPANUI
PLANETARIUM
& OBSERVATORY

OUR JOURNEY

The Big Bang

First One Up! The raising of the first of 11 slivers that compose the dome. (Alexandra Edwards)	A Family Affair Café/Bar manager Soraya Riroroko cheers on her brother Kai. (Alexandra Edwards)	Assessing the Work Edmundo and Mara evaluate the progress of the construction. (Alexandra Edwards)
Beyond the Rafters Getting the slivers up there... (Alexandra Edwards)	Cubist Spectacle Sawing on the rooftops. (Alexandra Edwards)	Solo Cowboy Our nephew Mako Riroroko chips in. (Alexandra Edwards)
Many Hands Make Light Work Cristián Vidal lends a hand. It looked easy from down below... It wasn't. (Alexandra Edwards)	A Pause Kai Riroroko takes a short break. (Alexandra Edwards)	Inside Out Peko Riroroko and his nephew Mako joining the slivers together. (Alexandra Edwards)
Double the Fun Two generations of the same family collaborate together. (Alexandra Edwards)	Silhouette Joining the peaks together. (Alexandra Edwards)	A Small Step... Stepping into gear. (Alexandra Edwards)
Almost There Just three slivers to go! (Alexandra Edwards)	Up and Up Peko sets up for the next one. (Alexandra Edwards)	Leadership at Work Cristián Vidal addresses his team. (Alexandra Edwards)
Stairway to Heaven Well, ladder, but still... (Alexandra Edwards)	Joining the Last Sliver This sliver was by far the hardest one to put up! (Alexandra Edwards)	Domo Complete The dome stands finished. (Alexandra Edwards)
Terrace Bar Because you didn't think we'd forget to have a bar, did you? (Alexandra Edwards)	Barfly? The only thing he's missing is a telescope. (Alexandra Edwards)

Our Bright Stars

YURI BELETSKY

King of the Night Calm night when only the moai and the fishermen are awake as Orion and Sirius shine above them.	Moai Rainbow Cloudy night sky and rising Moon produce a spectacular game of coulours at Rano Raraku,	Zodiacal Rano Kao Zodiacal light above the crater lake at Rano Kau. Notice the stars reflected on the water!
Pacific Sky Fantastic atmospheric airglow phenomenon at Anakena beach.	Jupiter Rising Jupiter is rising just above a hill at Anakena, which was illuminated by airglow and the headlights of a car.	Polynesian Milky Way Culminating Milky Way over Anakena beach.
Silent Rapanui Night The night sky over beautiful Anakena beach.	Anakena Milky Way Taken on such a calm night, only the horses could be heard making their way through this amazing scenery.	Stargazing at a Remote Beach The Milky Way rising with the Southern Cross, Alpha and Beta Centauri, and the red nebula Eta Carinae (at the top) decorate the night sky.
Sleeping Giants The Moon and Venus setting behind the moai statues at Ahu Nau Nau.	Easter Island Night Sky Here the Milky Way appears perfectly aligned with the topography of Anakena, hitting the hill just left of Ahu Nau Nau in Anakena.	Eclipse A LATAM Dreamliner 787 jet passes just in front of the Sun during takeoff from Rapa Nui to Santiago, Chile.
Great Comet of July Ok, so Yuri takes pictures in other places too, and we couldn't leave out this picture. Comet C/2014 Q1, the Moon, and a tree captured at Valle Río Hurtado, Chile.

GUSTAVO BÓRQUEZ PAOA

E Tui E Tui (The expelled: the sword of Orion's Belt). Those expelled were supposedly from Hiva, the Rapanui homeland.	Mata Mea Mata Mea (Red eye: Mars). Mars marked the biennial Koro festival and, depending on viewing conditions, was generally considered a bad omen.	Matariki Matariki (Small eyes/Chiefly eyes: The Pleiades). This is the most important asterism in all Polynesia, marking the start of the New Year on all the different islands and even sharing cognates of the same name.
Te Mataa Te Mataa (The obsidian spearpoint: The Southern Cross). This is a prominent asterism in the Southern Hemisphere, used to find direction.	Mata Po Nui Mata Po Nui (The eye of the great darkness/Spiritworld: Spica).	Ko Toe Ko Peu Renga1 Ko Toe Ko Peu Renga #1 (The wake of the fine pickaxe/energy: Menkalinan & Capella)
Ko Toe Ko Peu Renga Ko Toe Ko Peu Renga #2 (The remnants of the fine pickaxe/energy: Menkalinan & Capella)	Nga Vaka Nga Vaka (The canoes: Alpha and Beta Centaurii). These stars which were important for navigation, represented the two canoes used by brother and sister Hotu Matu’a and Ava Rei Pua, the legendary founders of Rapa Nui. Alpha Centauri is the third-brightest star in the night sky, after Sirius, and Canopus.	Kete Kete (The basket: Aldebaran, Delta, Theta, & Epsilon Tauri). These 4 stars announced the start of the period of abundance.
Ko Para Tahiri Ko Para Tahiri (The war club of Tahiri: Arcturus). Arcturus is the fourth-brightest star in the night sky, after Sirius, Canopus, and Alpha Centauri.	Tau Toru Tau Toru (The beautiful three: Orion's Belt). In both Tahiti and Rapa Nui, these stars represent a man who killed his wife in a fit of jealousy, and then regretful, parted with his two children to search for her in the Spiritworld.

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