Planetarium Show Catalog
School groups shows
The following educational shows are available for schools or other groups. Please have available the requested time and date, the title of the show you would like to see and the approximate number attending. If you would like to see two shows while you are here, we are happy to set up a combo of your choice of show titles.
Important: It is highly recommended that you schedule school / group shows at least a month in advance, since demand is high and available dates are limited. For more information or to schedule a presentation, please email Planetarium Director Lauren Albin.
School group rates:
- $75 flat fee for first show, regardless of group size
- Additional shows for the same students are at regular public rates ($3 per student and $5 per adult)
Non-school group rates:
- $3 per student and $5 per adult per show
- $75 minimum charge in effect per show
For More Information, please visit the Planetarium page.
Recommended for Pre-K – 1st Grades
The Little Star that Could
A story about Little Star, an average yellow star in search for planets of his own to protect and warm. Along the way, he meets other stars, learns what makes each star special, and discovers that stars combine to form star clusters and galaxies. Eventually, Little Star finds his planets. Each planet is introduced to your audiences with basic information about our Solar System. 35 minutes.
Zula Patrol: Under the Weather
The stalwart heroes of the Zula Patrol are on an expedition collecting samples of weather on planet Zula for scientist Multo’s research — using their loyal pet Gorga’s ability to collect and bottle all kinds of weather. But when the Zula gang inadvertently hurts Gorga’s feelings, he decides to leave Zula and find another planet to live on. Interplanetary villain Dark Truder tricks Gorga into stealing the weather from other planets – part of his latest nefarious scheme to rule the Universe. The Zula Patrol find out and go after him – in the process, learning all about weather, both terrestrial and interplanetary. 24 minutes.
Recommended for 2nd – 3rd Grades
Earth, Moon, & Sun
This planetarium show explores the relationship between the Earth, Moon and Sun with the help of Coyote, an amusing character adapted from Native American oral traditions who has many misconceptions about our home planet and its most familiar neighbors. His confusion about the universe makes viewers think about how the Earth, Moon and Sun work together as a system. Native American stories are told throughout delivering perspectives in cultural astronomies. 35 minutes.
Magic Tree House: Space Mission
Travel with the brother-sister duo, Jack and Annie, in their Magic Tree House as they discover a note that asks them to answer a series of six questions about space. With the help of the astronomer, the Internet, an astronaut, books and the writer of the mysterious note, Jack and Annie are taken on a wondrous journey of adventure and learning. This exciting voyage will carry visitors to the planets and far out into the Universe where Jack and Annie nearly get… Well, we don’t want to give it away. The adventure is just beginning! 30 minutes.
Perfect Little Planet
Imagine the ultimate space vacation! Discover our solar system through a new set of eyes – a family from another star system seeking the perfect vacation spot. Fly over the surface of Pluto, our best-known Dwarf Planet. Dive over the ice cliffs of Miranda, a moon of Uranus. Sail through the rings of Saturn. Feel the lightning storms of Jupiter. And walk on the surface of Mars. Which destination would you choose? This is a solar system journey for space travelers of all ages. 35 minutes.
Did an Asteroid Really Kill the Dinosaurs?
Did a space rock six miles wide slam into the Earth 66 million years ago and wipe out 75 percent of all living species at that time, including the dinosaurs? Explore this impacts and cosmic collisions across the Solar System in this dynamic show. Including footage from the first iridium layer found in Gubbio, Italy. 24 minutes.
Recommended for 4th – 5th Grades
Wildest Weather in the Solar System
Join us on a spectacular journey to witness the most beautiful, powerful, and mysterious weather phenomena in the solar system. You’ll fly through the thick atmosphere of Venus, magnetic storms on the sun, liquid methane showers on Titan, and a 400-year-old hurricane whirling at hundreds of miles per hour on Jupiter. From a storm with the power of a 100-megaton hydrogen bomb, to a dust storm that can engulf an entire planet, you’ll be glad you live on Earth! 24 minutes.
STARS: Powerhouses of the Universe
STARS focuses on the lives of the stars, how they are born, how they die, and how human understanding of the stars has changed over time. From Native Americans to Newton, from the electromagnetic spectrum to Einstein, audiences will explore nebulae, star clusters, pulsars, black holes, and more. This dramatic program features the voice talent of Mark Hamill. 24 minutes.
Capcom GO!
On July 20th 1969, 600 million people around the world gathered to witness a historic moment of human achievement broadcast live from the Moon. “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind,” said Neil Armstrong. The world celebrated as the astronauts took their first steps on the Moon. But few people were aware of just how huge an effort it had taken to get them there. These Apollo 11 astronauts were just 2 of nearly 400,000 people who had worked over ten years towards this goal. But how did they do it? What did it take to put humans on the Moon? 26 minutes.
Recommended for 6th – 7th Grades
Dynamic Earth
Dynamic Earth explores the inner workings of Earth’s great life support system: the global climate. With visualizations based on satellite monitoring data and advanced supercomputer simulations, this cutting-edge production follows a trail of energy that flows from the Sun into the interlocking systems that shape our climate: the atmosphere, oceans, and the biosphere. Audiences will ride along on swirling ocean and wind currents, dive into the heart of a monster hurricane, come face-to-face with sharks and gigantic whales, and fly into roiling volcanoes. 24 minutes.
Moons: Worlds of Mystery
Moons: Worlds of Mystery immerses you in the amazing diversity of moons and the important roles they play in shaping our solar system. Follow in the footsteps of astronauts to our silvery Moon, then venture beyond to unfamiliar and exotic worlds. Journey to the outer planets and their moons, returning home with newfound wonder about the dynamic and intricate solar system in which we all live. 24 minutes.
Space Aliens: Looking for Life in the Universe
Join our alien “experts”–Hopeful and Skeptical–as they try to convince each other whether or not life exists beyond the Earth. Learn about radio astronomy, habitable zones, and exoplanets—all important to the conversations about life in the universe. Imagine what alien life forms might look like on other planets. Follow their astrobiology arguments from the ocean floor to a journey across the galaxy! 28 minutes.
Auroras: Lights of Wonder
Immerse yourself in the breathtaking beauty of the aurora borealis as if you were experiencing it firsthand, all thanks to the innovative work of astrophotographer Kwon O Chul. This film goes beyond traditional time-lapse images, showcasing high-resolution, real-time hemispherical video captured with a specialized low-light camera system. It reveals the intricate details, vibrant colors, and dynamic movements of the aurora in stunning clarity. Throughout the film, you’ll also find insightful scientific explanations and captivating artwork that explore the legends surrounding the aurora. Filmed on location in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada, the movie highlights the rich cultural significance of this natural wonder. 29 minutes.
FORWARD! To the Moon
Kari Byron from Crash Test World and MythBusters launches us on a journey beyond the Earth towards a sustainable future in space. NASA’s 21st-century Artemis program, named after the Greek moon Goddess and twin of Apollo, is the next step in our mission to explore the universe. Here all about the on-going project to establish a lunar base and explore deep craters on the Moon. 26 minutes.
Recommended for 8th Grade and Beyond
Blackholes: The Other Side of Infinity
This production features high-resolution visualizations of cosmic phenomena, working with data generated by computer simulations, to bring the current science of black holes to the dome screen. Audiences will be dazzled with striking, immersive animations of the formation of the early universe, star birth and death, the collision of giant galaxies, and a simulated flight to a super-massive black hole lurking at the center of our own Milky Way Galaxy. 24 minutes.
Explore
Have you ever wondered how our modern spacecraft can navigate quickly and accurately to Earth orbit and beyond? This show explores the story of humanity’s fascination with the stars—from ancient stargazers to the breakthrough discoveries of scientists like Johannes Kepler. Kepler’s Laws are fundamental in physics and astronomy and central to modern
spaceflight. The show demonstrates how those laws work using simple, easy-to-understand animations and clear explanations. 25 minutes.
Phantom of the Universe: The Hunt for Dark Matter
“Phantom of the Universe” showcases an exciting exploration of dark matter, from the Big Bang to its anticipated discovery at the Large Hadron Collider. The show reveals the first hints of its existence through the eyes of Fritz Zwicky, the scientist who coined the term “dark matter.” It describes the astral choreography witnessed by Vera Rubin in the Andromeda galaxy and then plummets deep underground to see the most sensitive dark matter detector on Earth, housed in a former gold mine. From there, it journeys across space and time to the Large Hadron Collider at CERN, speeding alongside particles before they collide in visually stunning explosions of light and sound, while learning how scientists around the world are collaborating to track down the constituents of dark matter. 28 minutes.
Faster than Light: The Dream of Interstellar Flight
The impulse to strike out into the unknown, to see what’s over the horizon is as old as humanity. Today, a whole new horizon beckons. Scientists now believe that our galaxy is filled with solar systems, including up to 9 billion Sun-like stars with planets similar to Earth. Astronomers are racing to find habitable worlds, including any that might exist in the neighborhood of our Sun. But if we find one, how will we ever get there? How long will it take? What rocket designs might one day conquer the voids of space? “Faster Than Light: the Dream of Interstellar Flight” dazzles audiences with virtual rides aboard spacecraft of the future. They are based on whole new technologies designed to achieve ultra-high speeds, using exotic next generation rocket fuels and breakthrough concepts in physics. How far can our technology take us? 25 minutes.
Cosmic Concert Series
Led Zeppelin
The music of the classic rock group “Led Zeppelin” will be piped through the planetarium’s state-of-the-art sound system. Both music and lyrics are then visually interpreted using three-dimensional fulldome computer-generated environments. With the planetarium’s fulldome system, computer artists create a variety of immersive scenery and movement, from mood-provoking abstract art to theme-based imagery to transportive effects. The powerful surround imagery and surround sound will be choreographed to some of Led Zeppelin’s biggest hits like “Black Dog,” “Whole Lotta Love,” “Immigrant Song,” “Kashmir,” “Ramble On,” and “Stairway to Heaven.” 45 minutes.
Pink Floyd: 50 Years in a Heartbeat
Pink Floyd’s iconic album ‘The Dark Side Of The Moon’ was originally released in March 1973 and what more fitting a place to celebrate it and experience it than in a Planetarium, through the music set to visuals. With the help of modern technology, the idea of a show combining breath-taking views of the solar system and beyond, played out to 42 minutes of The Dark Side Of The Moon in surround sound, has been embraced by the band. NSC Creative have led the visual production efforts, working closely with Pink Floyd’s long time creative collaborator Aubrey Powell from Hipgnosis. Each song has a different theme; some futuristically looking forward and some a retro acknowledgment to Pink Floyd’s visual history, all relating to a time and space experience, embracing up to the minute technology that only a Planetarium can offer. A truly immersive and all-encompassing surround sound and visual treat that will transcend reality and take you way beyond the realms of reality. 45 minutes.
Ooky Spooky Light Show
This show is a delight for the entire family. Classic and favorite Halloween tunes such as “Monster Mash,” “Ghostbusters,” “Thriller,” and “Night on Bald Mountain,” as well as several pop songs with lyrics on the “creepy” side will come to life in this amazing full-dome graphics and light show. The visuals are fun, spooky, and will leave audiences smiling in delight. 38 minutes.
Let it Snow
Let it Snow features a variety of festive classics from Frank Sinatra and Chuck Berry to Burl Ives and Brenda Lee, and includes a stunning multi-media finale by the Trans-Siberian Orchestra. The soundtrack is visually enhanced with thematic animation, special effects and all-dome scenery. Let it Snow is a fun and entertaining experience for all ages, especially families. 32 minutes.
