This is the celestial highlight of the year: a total lunar eclipse perfectly placed for New Zealand on the night of March 3-4. We will not see another total lunar eclipse from here until December 2028. A dark notch appears on the Moon’s edge — Earth’s umbra, our planet’s true shadow, advancing steadily across the lunar surface. At 12.33am, maximum eclipse, it will hang high in the north-northeast, deep within Earth’s shadow. Sunlight, filtered and reddened by our atmosphere, is bent into the shadow and softly illuminates the lunar surface.

A dog appears to cradle its food bowl in this image used for the cover of the Oxford Handbook of Zooarchaeology. The best example I have uncovered comes from Ban Non Wat, a Bronze Age site in Thailand where we uncovered 700 human graves dating back 3000 years. On this occasion, we uncovered a complete pot, and then the distinctive contour of bone, a skull. Usually, we found dogs buried with a human, but once we uncovered the complete grave, we found that the dog was the only occupant. The Chinese did the same 3000 years ago, along with the charioteers and the chariots they hauled into battle.

Department of Conservation staff work on a new section of the Motatapu Track. PHOTOS: DOCA section of a spectacular high country walking track near Wānaka and Arrowtown has been rerouted to avoid a large, slow-moving slip, the Department of Conservation says. "We’ve been monitoring the slow-moving slip for a number of years," Ms Sklenar said. A section of the Motatapu Track has been re-routed to avoid a large, slow-moving slip (pictured). The track was part of Te Araroa Trail and popular with hikers and trail runners, she said.

Former University of Otago council member Malcolm Wong with his daughter Eleanor (left), wife Nicola and daughter Georgia at Georgia’s graduation last year. PHOTO: MCROBIE STUDIOSDunedin accountant Malcolm Wong’s highlight during his tenure on the University of Otago Council is one that is very personal. His tenure on the University Council was a ministerial appointment and he chaired the council’s audit and risk committee. He is a past chairman of the Dunedin Shanghai Association and he has been chairman of the Dunedin Chinese Gardens Trust since 2008. He is also chairman of the Dunedin Chinese Cultural Festival advisory board; the Dunedin Chinese Cultural Festival runs until March 3, honouring Chinese culture, heritage and contemporary creativity while recognising the enduring contribution of Chinese communities to Dunedin and New Zealand.

You are not permitted to download, save or email this image. Visit image gallery to purchase the image.

For the first time in about 90 years the United States has seen more people moving out of the country than moving in. The US experienced a net negative migration of about 150,000 people in 2025, according to the Brookings Institution.

Bioeconomy Science Institute chief executiver Mark Piper. Photo: SUPPLIED/PLANT & FOOD RESEARCH (file)The government's Bioeconomy Science Institute is to cut 134 jobs less than a year after it was formed. That comes on top of 152 jobs axed when the institute was set up as a merger of AgResearch, Manaaki Whenua - Landcare Research, Plant & Food Research and Scion into a single organisation. The cuts include 86 science roles and 48 professional services roles such as finance and administration. "The government's own science system advisory group had warned them that the lack of investment in science, innovation and technology is playing a role in our sluggish productivity."

Photo: ODT filesA newly revived charitable trust is splitting $379,770 among 11 local and regional community causes in its first funding round. The Queenstown Trails Trust (QTT) received the largest amount, $109,000, for the southern approach to a new cycling/walking bridge over State Highway 6, near the Shotover Bridge. • Baskets of Blessing, $10,000 for a food storage container. • Upper Clutha Community Link, $5000 for a foodbank storage container. • Wānaka Cycling Without Age, $4150 for a storage container.

A petrol tanker spilled about 300 litres of fuel in Owaka yesterday morning. A Fire and Emergency New Zealand (Fenz) spokesman said emergency services were called to the spill at a petrol station in Campbell St shortly before 5am. The council had staff at the site by 8.30am, the spokesman said. "The spill ... has since been cleaned up — and that includes the company concerned cleaning out nearby mud tanks." The council spokesman said there was no evidence at this stage any fuel had made its way into nearby waterways, but the council would continue to monitor the situation.

Photo: Peter McIntoshFried chicken fast-food giant Popeyes has been given the nod for a Dunedin store. Consent documents have revealed plans for a new drive-through store in South Dunedin. Earlier this month, Dunedin City Council planners approved a non-notified resource consent from Ironside Properties Limited for the drive-through restaurant. Plans on the Dunedin application were labelled "new Popeyes store for Tahua Partners Ltd". Last month, United Arab Emirates restaurant chain Chicking announced plans to open two Dunedin stores — in Andersons Bay Rd and George St — later this year.

Wakatipu High principal Oded Nathan said his charges were already experiencing issues using the public network, run by the ORC, to get to and from school. "We need to remove barriers to education, and having a ministry-based bus service for our kids is an important part of that." There was a single bus service, at 3.26pm, which "did not ... meet the capacity needs". The council aimed to deliver a public transport system that suited "the most people, most of the time". She said every year across the country, public transport experienced a phenomena dubbed "March madness" wherein public transport services were full, if not oversubscribed, as schools and universities returned and visitors moved around the country.

PHOTO: GREGOR RICHARDSONIMAGE: SUPPLIEDWork has begun on a $9 million industrial precinct project in South Dunedin a developer hopes will attract 12 businesses. A digger was at the site at 249 Hillside Rd yesterday where Logic Group is building 12 individual units (pictured right), from 90-300sq m each, aimed at light commercial and industrial occupants. Logic Group director Shaun Pont earlier described the project as a ‘‘modern light-industrial precinct’’ aimed at tradie-type businesses seeking their own lock-ups.

PHOTO: ORCStaff from the Otago Regional Council and the Central Otago and Queenstown Lakes District Councils gather at Windfall Creek, where it enters Lake Wānaka, this week to take part in a freshwater oil spill response exercise. In a statement yesterday regional council investigations team leader Peter Kelliher said the training was centred on deploying a "containment boom" where the creek ran into the lake. Mr Kelliher said a containment boom was an important tool used to limit the spread of oil should an oil spill take place. "The exercise was an excellent demonstration of local authorities working together to strengthen preparedness and response capability across the Central Otago districts," he said. The joint exercise formed part of ongoing regional readiness activities aimed at protecting Otago’s freshwater environments and supporting co-ordinated emergency responses, the council statement said.

Photo: ODT filesA Dunedin man who burgled the deceased estate of a recluse who made international headlines has been sentenced. Corey John Knox, 40, appeared in the Dunedin District Court yesterday after earlier pleading guilty to a burglary of Peter Robb’s home. Yesterday, Counsel Philip Ross argued his client got roped into the crime, which the lead offender had already planned. He said Knox "got talked into something and foolishly participated", but his criminal responsibility was less than the lead offender. Judge David Robinson sentenced Knox to 200 hours’ community work.

But it appears extremely unlikely Mr Williamson will appear. A source told the Otago Daily Times yesterday Mr Williamson had been living in Canada for the past few months, having left New Zealand just before Christmas. Attempts to contact Mr Williamson yesterday were unsuccessful, an email to his Queenstown business getting a return saying he was out of the office. Mr Williamson was challenged by staff before he left that he would not come back but denied this, the source said. Another source said the Dunedin business in Kaikorai Valley Rd employed 20-30 staff, while the Queenstown business in Frankton Rd, from where Dart Engineering originated, had 10-15 employees.