As mental health challenges mount across South Africa, a pioneering research project is turning to an unlikely remedy: the night sky. (PicknPic)
As mental health challenges mount across South Africa, a pioneering research project is turning to an unlikely remedy: the night sky.
From the dark expanses of the Karoo to city rooftops, the first-of-its-kind initiative is examining how stargazing can alleviate depression, reduce anxiety, and strengthen social bonds.
Researchers from Stellenbosch University’s CoCREATE Health Hub and the International Astronomical Union Office of Astronomy for Development (IAU OAD) are investigating how awe, nature immersion and “cosmic perspective-taking” influence emotional well-being.
With nearly 40% of South Africans showing symptoms of depression or anxiety, the project — Astronomy for Mental Health — is testing whether looking up can literally help people feel better on the ground.
Healing powers of the cosmos
Led by Lynn Hendricks, Therese Fish, Nikki Thomas and their IAU OAD colleagues, the report examines how structured stargazing experiences — from local community gatherings to overnight retreats — can support mental health.
“Through this collaboration, we are creating new ways for people to find healing outside clinical settings,” said Fish, the vice-dean: clinical services and social impact at Stellenbosch University’s Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences.
“Families are reconnecting not just to each other, but to the environment and to a shared sense of humanity.”
The project builds on Kaplan’s attention restoration theory, which explains how natural environments that gently engage the senses help the mind recover from fatigue.
The night sky, vast and tranquil, offers what researchers call soft fascination: an effortless form of attention that restores clarity and perspective.
Awe-filled experiences have been shown to activate brain regions associated with emotional regulation, lower cortisol levels, and restore calm. The research team believes the night sky offers a uniquely powerful version of this effect.
They are particularly interested in the Overview Effect, a phenomenon described by astronauts who, upon seeing Earth from space, experience a profound shift in awareness and connection to humanity.
By inviting ordinary people to look up and reflect on their place in the cosmos, the researchers hope to spark similar feelings of calm, gratitude and belonging here on Earth.
“Astronomy has always invited us to ask big questions,” said Dominic Vertue of the IAU OAD.
“Now we’re learning it can also help us sit with them, quietly, together, under the same sky.”
Sutherland: Early results
In October, 14 families attended a guided astronomy weekend in Sutherland, home to some of the world’s darkest skies and the iconic Southern African Large Telescope.
Over two nights, participants explored the Karoo landscape, observed Saturn’s rings, the Moon’s craters, and the Milky Way, and shared reflective fireside conversations.
The early results are promising. Participants reported reduced anxiety and improved mood within 24 hours.
Many described “mental spaciousness”—a calm, uncluttered mind with room to process emotions without being overwhelmed. Families reported greater cohesion and meaningful, distraction-free connection.
“If the effect was only about escape or rest, we would expect a similar response after any weekend break,” Hendricks said. “What we’re finding, though, is that the cosmic element, the vastness, the awe, creates a shift that’s distinct. It doesn’t just calm people; it changes how they think about themselves and their place in the world.”
Embodied experience and nature’s pause
The programme is about more than looking at stars, Hendricks noted. “When you engage your body — feeling the sand on the beach or hearing leaves crunch in the forest — you enter an embodied experience of nature.
The night sky creates a similar effect. “In darkness, your senses are heightened. Your ears start working better, your skin feels crisper, things look different, and you have a moment of tranquillity where your mind has this mental space.
“It’s almost like you’re pausing the processor and deleting all the garbage files, and although you’re entranced and in awe of what you can see and the unknown, you also have this moment to pause, reflect and breathe. Because the universe itself, when you see it, you align yourself in relation to something so much larger than you.”
This embodied awe activates multiple brain regions, enhancing emotional regulation, reducing cortisol levels, and generating calm. Combined with reflection on the universe’s vastness, participants report a profound sense of perspective.
Latifah Jacobs, a community leader from Kuilsriver, describes her first full encounter with the night sky. “Even though I’ve been to Sutherland before for outreach work, this was the first time I really slowed down and paid attention,” she said.
“It felt strangely new, almost like meeting an old friend properly for the first time. I realised how much I had missed by rushing through the place before.”
Her body felt quieter. The stillness of the night helped slow her thoughts. The act of looking up created a sense of relief from her daily demands.
She noticed a lingering calm in the days that followed. “The stillness of the night helped slow my thoughts. I felt more open and connected to the people who shared the experience with me. I thought about how many others would benefit from nights free of chaos, bullets or grief.”
Rowan Roberts, who attended both the Hout Bay and Sutherland camps, found both sessions very informative. “I work in a pretty high-stress environment, and since then I find it much easier to ground myself and destress,” he said, adding that the stars and the night sky are an “amazing tool” that everyone has access to.
Accessible, equitable stargazing
One of the key strengths of the initiative is accessibility. Stargazing requires minimal equipment, is culturally universal and can be done in both urban and rural settings.
Vertue recently registered for his PhD in the division of public health to explore how virtual reality simulations could enable people without clear night skies to experience similar benefits. Apps can display constellations, whereas VR can simulate stargazing sensations.
The team’s collaborations with the San council aim to document indigenous constellations and stories, “because we have that; it’s just that the general public isn’t aware that we have our own legends of the stars that have been handed down,” Hendricks added.
“We want to make the night sky accessible to every South African, but we are also very cognisant that it’s not possible for everybody, so we’re looking at how we can then make it equitable. Even though it’s free, it doesn’t mean equal access because of pollution and climate change, etcetera.”
The project runs through 2029. The researchers plan to expand to youth programmes, urban stargazing circles and community-led sessions; compare experiences across different environments, from city backyards to deep dark skies; and measure both psychological and physiological outcomes.
They also aim to develop a practical toolkit for families and communities that enables stargazing for well-being across South Africa.
Beyond science, the project fosters reflection and connection. Participants report changes not only in mood but also in perspective, family cohesion, and purpose.
For Jacobs, seeing the magnitude of the sky made her personal challenges feel less overwhelming.
“I realised that life is bigger than the situations that consume me. Being there with my community made the experience feel softer and more meaningful.
“We didn’t have to say much — just standing together under that huge sky made me feel closer to them. It was like the stars gave us a quiet space to breathe together, to feel connected without trying. It reminded me that we’re part of something shared, something bigger than our daily worries.”
The experience gave her a simple but profound tool for grounding herself. “It is accessible, doesn’t require much and nurtures emotional and mental well-being.”
Roberts told how he now finds himself looking up at the stars whenever he gets a chance.
“Looking up puts things into perspective. It makes you realise just how tiny you really are, so if you are that tiny, then how tiny is your stress in the universe? So, why stress the little stuff?”