Te Papa and the Natural Hazards Commission Toka Tū Ake are taking Rūaumoko: Restless land around Aotearoa New Zealand to promote natural hazard awareness and preparedness.
When | Āhea
Currently touring Aotearoa New Zealand
Where | Ki hea
Check the tour schedule below for venues
This touring exhibition uses mātauranga Māori and a scientific lens, this hands-on, interactive exhibition delves into the realm of Rūaumoko, the atua of volcanoes and earthquakes, and the youngest child of Ranginui and Papatūānuku.
The story is told through the effects of Rūaumoko, his important contributions to living on the whenua, how we can be prepared, and the science involved.
You will be taken on a journey through interactive activities, tectonic plate models, volcanic rock samples, a shake table, and kōrero from Rūaumoko.
Restless whenua, strong people. Rūaumoko, god of earthquakes and volcanoes, lays his challenge – his restless rumblings present us with taonga as well as hazards. A country where colliding and subducting plates cause quakes, volcanoes, tsunami, and landslides.
Learn about the atua (deity) Rūaumoko and how he affects our lives here in Aotearoa New Zealand, through simple activities. Download a free activity book for kids – focused on preparing for emergencies, word searches, a crossword, colouring pages, creating a poem, and matching up parts of a volcano.
Around 20,000 shakes are measured every year in Aotearoa New Zealand – about 55 a day – our whenua (land) never stops shaking. Plates collide. Pressure builds. The land ruptures. How do we cope with living on such shaky ground?
Understand how natural hazard events may impact you, your home, and your community. Explore where natural hazard events have occurred in Aotearoa New Zealand before, and learn about natural hazard risks where you live.
Explore the Natural Hazards Portal on the Natural Hazards Commission website.
Cyclone Gabrielle in 2023 brought heavy rainfall, strong winds, and storm surges, causing widespread flooding, landslides, and power outages in Taitokerau, Tairāwhiti, and Te Ika-a-Māui. Local iwi and hapū suffered much damage – some irrevocable – causing long-term impacts on the communities. Head of Mātauranga Māori Migoto Eria and Curator Mātauranga Māori Amber Aranui went to help out at four marae in Ngāti Kahungunu.
Explore resources for earthquake preparedness, what to do during and after an earthquake, and how and why earthquakes and other disasters happen in Aotearoa New Zealand.
Enter the realm of Rūaumoko, god of volcanoes and earthquakes, and explore the geological forces that shape our shaky land and experience what an earthquake feels like in our quake house in Te Taiao | Nature.
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