Aurora australis Westport tonight

A rugged headland at the western end of the Westport coast, with a lighthouse and a fur seal colony on the rocks below. The cape faces northwest and southwest over the Tasman Sea. At night the cape is dark and exposed, with Westport's modest light dome to the east and open ocean in all other directions. Bortle Class 2-3 conditions from the headland. Aurora australis appears to the south and south-southwest from Cape Foulwind - not directly south due to the cape's western orientation, but the large south-facing sector of open Tasman Sea makes Kp 5-6 events detectable. The lighthouse area car park is accessible at night. The walkway down to the seal colony is rough in darkness - stay on the main track.

The Pancake Rocks and Blowholes at Punakaiki sit on a southwest-facing headland inside Paparoa National Park. The rock platforms face southwest over the Tasman Sea. At night the national park is dark and the ocean horizon to the west and south-southwest is fully open. Bortle Class 2 conditions from the rock platforms. At Kp 5-6, aurora australis appears to the south and south-southwest above the sea. The Paparoa region is one of the most visually striking coastal positions on the West Coast - the Pancake Rocks and aurora overhead is a combination only available to those who make the overnight trip. The coast is dangerous in storms and rough weather - check conditions before walking to the rock platforms at night.

The Ngakawau River mouth and Charming Creek Walkway trailhead north of Westport give a west-facing coastal and valley position. The beach at the river mouth faces northwest and south-southwest over the Tasman Sea. No settlement within 15 km to the north or south. Bortle Class 2-3 conditions. The Buller Gorge inland from Westport gives similar sky quality in a sheltered valley position. At Kp 5-6, aurora australis appears to the south-southwest from the coast positions. The Charming Creek area is less frequently visited than Cape Foulwind and gives slightly darker conditions.