Hoku-noho-aupuni ( the Milky Way )

The Milky Way appears dim from most of the United States. But the big skies and dark tropical nights make Hawaii stargazing stellar. Imagine walking on a faintly moonlit beach, cool sand between your toes, and you look up to see the wonder of the Milky Way above you, "Hoku-noho-aupuni", a name for the Milky Way, along with "Leleiona", the title I gave to this painting inspired by the majesty of Hawaii's night time sky.

To astronomers the main attraction on the Big Island is the night sky, as the summit of Mauna Kea (elevation: 4200m) offers the best observing conditions for night-time astronomy in the Northern Hemisphere. At that altitude, acclimatization at Hale Pohaku (Polynesian for “Stone House”), the astronomers’ lodge at the 2900m level, is required for at least 24 hours before spending a full night at the summit. All telescopes on the mountain have their small offices in Hale Pohaku. A few hundred meters further down the road is a visitors center which offers nightly star parties.
Man, doesn't everyone get a charge out of the universe that surrounds us?