Auckland's night sky comes alive in light and sound extravaganza

Saturday, 27 January 2018

Music boomed and lights beamed and twinkled from Auckland's Harbour Bridge on Saturday night. (Video first published in 2018.)

Auckland's harbour became a multimedia stage in a massive light and sound show on Saturday night.

Ninety thousand LED lights and 100 floodlights beamed and flashed from the Harbour Bridge in time with original music, delighting thousands who packed viewing points around the city to watch.

Every visible beam, arch, pile, girder, strut and pylon lit up for a six-minute show which was repeated at 9.30pm, then every half hour until midnight.

Thousands of lights turn the water purple, pink and gold beneath the Auckland Harbour Bridge.

The celebration – entitled Vector Lights – was billed as a salute to Auckland's diverse cultures and featured Polynesian drumming and te reo Māori lyrics alongside the dazzling lights.

**READ MORE:

Vector Lights is part of a wider 10-year smart energy partnership between Vector and Auckland Council

* Auckland Harbour Bridge is about to get $10 million brighter

* Plan to light up Auckland Harbour Bridge using solar power

* How they make it: changing the Harbour Bridge's light configuration**

Dozens of boaties took to the water for the show, while thousands watched it live at energy company Vector's Facebook.

The music was also streamed in sync on Coast FM.

Thousands of people packed viewing points across the city to catch a glimpse of the lights.

Viewers described the show as 'magical', 'awesome' and 'spectacular'.

'Great to see the bridge all dressed up,' one said.

The show will be repeated on Sunday and Monday nights to celebrate Auckland Anniversary weekend.

The lights will be re-programmed for a different show on Waitangi Day.

The bridge is believed to be the first major one in the world to be lit entirely by solar power, drawing its energy from 600 solar panels feeding into fridge-sized Tesla batteries.

Vector has committed $10 million to the project for installation and maintenance costs over the next 10 years.

Bridge authorities New Zealand Transport Agency and Auckland Council have also committed funding.

A slew of companies have been working since April to get the permanent installation, named 'Vector Lights', in place.

Project manager Paul Cannin said the lights would also be used later in the year to mark other significant dates like Anzac Day and Matariki.

Vector's website recommended people watch the light show from either Harbour View Beach Reserve on the Te Atatū Peninsula, Sentinel Beach in Herne Bay, Mount Eden, the Auckland waterfront, Little Shoal Bay in Northcote, the Bayswater Marina, Queens Parade or Mount Victoria in Devonport, or Bastion Point.

There was also a dedicated audio stream available at Vector's website.