STARGAZING
Bonin Islands offer amazing views of the night sky.
SEE THE stars
The location in the Pacific ocean is isolated and thus far away from most artificial lights. This allows a very clear and unspoiled view of the night sky. The southern location of the islands also enable constellations to be seen that are not visible from mainland Japan. There are two space related facilities on the island that may also be of interest: VERA VLBI array & JAXA downrange station.
WHERE TO GO
Stargazing is possible from basically anywhere on the island.
However, the further away you go from artificial light, the clearer your view of the stars will be.
If you have a vehicle, we recommend going to either a remote beach or mountain top.
Of course, it is possible to see the stars even from the main village or Ohmura beach.
You can also join a night tour if you would rather go with a guide.
JAXA DOWNRANGE STATION
The Ogasawara Downrange Station was built in1975 as a National Space Development Agency of Japan (NASDA) facility. The Station is equipped with radar (rocket telemeter antenna and precision radar antenna) to check the flight trajectories, status, and safety of rockets launched from the Tanegashima Space Center (TNSC). You can see the antennas from the main village if you look up towards the mountain range.
VERA
VERA (VLBI Exploration of Radio Astrometry) is a VLBI array to explore the 3-D structure of the Milky way galaxy based on high-precision astrometry of Galactic maser sources. The antenna is lit up in an orange colour during the evenings and is beautiful to see both from a distance and up front.
NIGHT SKY GALLERY
A small collection of night photographs from the islands.
