Pia Nänny

“I find it mindblowing that my second favourite place in the world is an asteroid.”

With these words Auke Slotegraaf of the Astronomical Society of Southern Africa (ASSA) congratulated John Saunders and other members of the Hermanus Astronomy Centre (HAC) with the renaming of asteroid 260824 to Hermanus by the International Astronomical Union’s Minor Planetary Committee.

This announcement was made at a special function held in the Overstrand Auditorium on Wednesday, 10 August.

According to Saunders the citation for the remaining was: “The village of Hermanuspietersfontein, later shortened to Hermanus, was founded in honour of a man who taught Dutch to farmers’ children. This minor planet named in recognition of the Hermanus Astronomy Centre’s enthusiasm for astronomy and their dedication to educational outreach in South Africa.”

Pretoria is the only other city or town in South Africa that has an asteroid named after it.

Slotegraaf referred to the HAC’s plans to establish an astronomy educational centre and said it “excites” him. He assured the HAC of the ASSA council’s support and said he hoped the Overstrand municipal council and the region’s citizens would also support it.

The plans for the HAC’s envisaged Astronomy Education Centre and Observatory near the main lookout point on Rotary Drive were shown by HAC member Pierre de Villiers.

The centre will comprise three components: A 16m diameter hall which will serve as display area and meeting/presentation facility, a three-tiered open air amphitheatre on top of the hall and a 6 x 15m observatory with a roll-off roof which will be able to house three telescopes.

The HAC members plan to teach all visitors to the centre to concepts: how and why sundials word and how celestial objects move across the sky in 24 hours and 12 months.

The members see this centre as an important tool in achieving their vision of “a Hermanus community knowledgeable of the southern skies” and hope that it will kick-start meaningful educational tourism in Hermanus.

Saunders said the HAC are awaiting approval from council to go ahead and are also sourcing funding for the centre. It will cost approximately 3.5M to build.

Mayor Nicolette Botha-Guthrie thanked the HAC for their initiative and enthusiasm. “This centre will be a powerful tool in increasing awareness about the town,” she said. She wished the HAC well with the process.

During the function honorary membership was awarded to Dr Amanda Gulbis and founder member Steve Kleyn.

Source: Hermanus Times