Planetarium Shows for Educators

Poor Little Star is new to the universe and just wants to see what else is out there. Judging by the reactions of the other stars he meets, he is destined to be nothing more than average. On his journey of discovery, Little Star learns what makes each star special. For some, it is their color and temperature; for others it may be their planets, or their stellar companions. Along the way, he discovers that stars can combine to form larger groups, like star clusters and galaxies. Eventually, Little Star finds his planets who tell them a little about themselves and give him his special name, the Sun.

Paleoclimatologist Dr. Gina Mosely studies the long-past climate of our planet. She is particularly interested in when ice ages transitioned to warmer periods, called interglacials. But how, exactly, does one study a climate that no longer exists? The answer is caves.

Ancient caves preserve a record of the past climate within the formations, including stalactites and stalagmites. Adding to the challenge, many of the best caves for this kind of science are currently flooded.

Students will discover how Dr. Mosely uses cave formations to study the ancient climate and the dangers involved for those who risk their lives cave diving to bring her samples from deep within the Earth.

Gather around everyone! The Great Schiaparelli is about to take you on a grand adventure through the solar system. Many wonders await you, but so do great perils. Each incredible planet holds fascinating features and traits to make it unique and dangerous in its own way. Discover the heavy, thick, hot Venusian atmosphere that, without protection, would instantaneously flatten and melt you like an uncooked pancake. Attempt to land on Mars, which barely has an atmosphere to speak of. Get blown about by 1,600+ mph winds in Neptune's upper atmosphere. Yes, discover the wonders of the solar system and see if your students can survive it all.

Black holes are some of the most mysterious and intriguing objects in the universe. Ranging in size from just a few solar masses to billions of solar masses, they all possess the property that once inside their Schwarzschild radii, gravity is so strong that not even light can escape. Explore the formation of black holes, their nature, and how they may ultimately dictate the fate of the universe.

Our planet is in constant motion. Though few realize it, our planet's constant motion carries us an amazingly fast ride. Earth's rotation about its axis and revolution around the Sun give rise to what we experience day in and day out, year in and year out. This show examines the so-called dance of our planet in space and how we can see the evidence for that dance in what we experience through observing the sky, both day and night, and our experience of the repetitive seasons. This is an excellent show that teaches the fundamentals of our planet's motions.

Join Sesame Street's Big Bird, Elmo, and their friend from faraway China, Hu Hu Zhu, as they learn about the sky in this fun adventure. The three sky watchers learn about sunsets and finding starry patterns like the Big Dipper in the night sky. Students are encouraged to use their imaginations and actively participate in this program

T.Rex will be available for school programs starting April 1st, 2025

Behold, the G.O.A.T! That's “Greatest Of All Tyrants,” Tyrannosaurus rex, a.k.a. “T. rex.” This giant screen film explores how new discoveries shape our current understanding of one of the most fearsome dinosaurs to walk the Earth. This ultimate predator is steeped in myth, mystery, and misinformation. T. rex, the movie, will shed light on paleontologists' latest understanding of its titular star. From digging T. rex fossils in the Hell Creek Badlands to stepping back in time, via CGI, Tyrannosaurus rex will come to life on the planetarium dome and give insight to the origins and life of this so-called “king of the tyrant lizards” on the prehistoric continent of Laramidia.

In 1609, Galileo first turned his crude "spy glass" telescope skyward. Four centuries later, the telescope has evolved into modern wonders of technology like the Hubble Space Telescope. Join two young sky watchers and their astronomer friend as they explore the universe and learn why telescopes are such important tools of science.

Follow the adventures of Cy, Annie, and Cy's dog Armstrong as they embark upon an unexpected journey into space! This wonderful Earth, Sun and Moon adventure show is written by award-winning children's author Kristyn Crow.

The Solar System's formation from a huge cloud of gas and dust is tough for students to visualize. This show does an incredible job of explaining and depicting how the Earth was born. See the solar nebula collapse, countless dust particles clump into larger bodies, and asteroids coalescing into protoplanets. Observe the Earth-Theia collision that formed the Moon. Four and a half billion years roll by as today's solar system comes into being and students gain an understanding of how our Earth formed.

A live sky tour follows the program, featuring constellations, planets, the moon and other items of interest currently visible in the sky, with tips for finding your way around in the heavens on the next clear night, and stories about the stars.

An educator's guide with classroom activities is available for this program upon request.

The universe is awash in radio waves, infrared light, visible light, ultraviolet light, microwaves, x-rays, and gamma rays pouring forth from various celestial objects. Learn about the electro-magnetic spectrum and common, everyday application of these forms of energy in this fast-paced adventure.

Have you ever dreamt that you were flying? Explore humankind's quest for flight from the ancient myths of Aladdin's flying carpet and the kites of ancient China to Leonardo da Vinci's scientific study of wings and the pioneers of actual flight. Learn how history also shaped the early days of powered aviation with the advent of world wars. This poetic and visually stunning show takes you on a journey from the time when humans could only dream of flying to our modern day world where all one needs to fly is a ticket.

A typical day for GranPa and Zoe in the Australian outback is interrupted when GranPa's old nemesis, Bogbog, attempts to block sunlight from reaching the Earth. Exploring and utilizing different wavelengths of the electromagnetic spectrum, can GranPa and Zoe foil Bogbog's diabolical plan, reveal the nature of color and light, and save the day?

Concepts: Electromagnetic spectrum, color, light waves, energy.

The legend of Orion, the mighty hunter, comes to life! From his humble beginnings to his daring hunting exploits and romances, Orion and his faithful hunting dogs, Sirius and Procyon, move from adventure to adventure. Eventually, having earned the scorn of Apollo, Orion battles Scorpius, the scorpion, in a fight to the death. Discover how, upon his demise, Orion was spirited into the winter sky for all to see, along with his two faithful companions.

The classic Greek story of the princess and her hero come to life! Poor Andromeda is being sacrificed to the sea monster Cetus for the sins of her mother, Cassiopeia. Just what led to this calamity? Where is her father, Cepheus, in all this? It all sounds so terrible; she needs a hero. Never fear, for Perseus is almost here! But, before rescuing Andromeda, Perseus must survive the petrifying Gorgon, Medusa. Will the story end happily? Join us to find out.

Meet the Whiskers, a family of endangered Australian sea lions. Baby Otto has no one looking out for her, other than her mother. Then again, maybe there is somebody else; Ranger Dirk Holman is charged with preserving this species along Australia's rugged southern coast.

This coming-of-age tale follows Otto and her mother as they struggle to survive, and follows Dirk as he travels to California to learn the secrets of the California sea lion's dramatic recovery. Will Dirk gain the knowledge needed to preserve the Australian sea lion? Will Otto survive the harsh realities of life off the southern Australian coast?

Discover the answers in this film that is sure to engage your students.

Come explore the African Serengeti in this beautiful giant screen film. Encounter one of the world's oldest and most vibrant ecosystems, whose story is told through the million-animal, ever-moving migration of the wildebeest. Here, each creature, from the smallest insect to the largest land mammal, has an important role to play. What series of events happened to create this incredible ecosystem? Can we learn its intricacies to save and protect the Serengeti? Come see how this extraordinary place came to be.

**Please note: This film includes scenes of predation in the wild.

Our star, the sun, goes through an 11 year cycle, ranging from relative quiescence to a substantial sunspot activity and eruptions of prominences across its surface. During solar maximum, the sun can discharge floods of charged particles into space by way of coronal mass ejections. Most never cross our planet's path, but those that do can affect space weather around the globe and spawn beautiful auroral displays. While most geomagnetic storms are relatively harmless, occasionally the sun spews forth a storm of particles so extreme it becomes a superstorm, with the potential to wreak havoc on our technologically dependent society. Discover the nature of our star and the danger it can pose.

The sun has shone on our world for four and a half billion years, providing the energy that drives the winds, our weather, and all life. The passage of the sun's fiery disc across the sky - day by day, month by month - is how civilizations have tracked time. As a typical dwarf star, the sun consumes 600 million tons of hydrogen each second and is 500 times as massive as all the planets combined. Discover the secrets of our star and experience never-before-seen images of the sun's violent surface in an immersive format.

Look at the night sky and you are seeing the universe as humankind has for nearly all of history. The visible light that our eyes detect has revealed much about the universe. Yet, it is only the tip of the iceberg: radio, infrared, ultraviolet, x-rays, and other wavelengths of the electro-magnetic spectrum carry a wealth of information about planets, stars, and galaxies. The relatively recent capability of detecting energy from across the spectrum, together with the added power of interlinking telescopes continents apart, is finally lifting the veil on the secrets of our unseen universe. Discover these technologies and their revelations on this journey into the realm beyond what our eyes can see.

Few things appear more peaceful than a quiet, starry sky. Yet, terrific, unseen forces shape the cosmos: galaxies collide, supernova explosions rip stars apart, black holes in the hearts of galaxies devour whole stars, and asteroids and comets streak earthward.

The carnival, with all of its rides and attractions, has come to town and the most incredible experience is the Time Master's odyssey through space and time.  Within the Time Master's tent lies a whimsical overview of the history of the universe, starting with the Big Bang and ending in our present time.

Discover how various processes inevitably progressed to the point that life arose on one small planet orbiting a yellow star. The Time Master's array of mechanical devices demonstrate key scientific concepts in simple terms, making it easier for one life form, humans, to understand where they came from. Sprinkle in a little humor along the way and this steampunk-themed show leads to the discovery that we are all made of stars.

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