Connect the dots in July with BASF Planetarium

We’re shooting for the stars at BASF Planetarium in July, including a schedule packed with family-friendly shows twice a week, story time for younger kids on Saturdays and an all-Spanish show on the last Thursday of the month! Kick back in the reclining seats in our fulldome planetarium and enjoy fun and educational astronomy programs for the whole family!

 

See our full schedule and purchase tickets online now!

 

See our July show, Cartooning Constellations on Tuesdays (7/4, 11, 18 & 25) and the fourth Friday (7/28) of month! On clear dark nights, we humans have long looked up at the stars to “connect the dots” and make cartoon pictures. These sky pictures tell stories, mark the passing of the night, the changing of seasons and show our way on Earth and through space. Enjoy ancient and modern constellations through the eyes of celebrated children’s author and star cartoonist H. A. Rey, the creator of beloved Curious George.

 

Visit us on Saturdays for lots of family fun! We host a FREE Star & Space Story Time featuring space-themed children’s books at 12:30 PM in the planetarium lobby before the planetarium show starts. (Please RSVP for this free event.) Join us at 1:00 PM for rotating family-friendly planetarium shows, including Perfect Little Planet on July 1, Earth, Moon & Sun on July 8, Accidental Astronauts on July 15, Dawn of the Space Age on July 22 and Astronaut on July 29.

 

***THIS SHOW HAS BEEN CANCELLED!*** Finally, join us Thursday, July 27 at 7:00 PM for the ALL-Spanish planetarium show Astronautas Accidentales.

 

We hope YOU will join us for all the FUN at the planetarium this month!  All planetarium shows, with the exception of the FREE Star & Space Story Time, are free to planetarium members; non-member tickets are $5/adults and $3/children 12 and under. See our full schedule and purchase tickets online now!

 

Kick off your summer at BASF Planetarium!

Join BASF Planetarium for new programs, shows and lots of family fun in June as we kick off summer! Tickets to planetarium shows are FREE to planetarium members; non-member tickets are $5/adults and $3/students, unless otherwise noted below.

See our full monthly schedule and purchase tickets/RSVP.

WHAT’S NEW?

Our brand new Science Café program launches this month, with speaker David Babb presenting The Life of Stars at 7:00 PM on Friday, June 16. David’s presentation will focus on the chronology of the life of stars through astrophotography.

Enjoy some socialization, desserts, refreshments and amazing science. This event is open to ages 21+ and registration is $15 per person. Reserve your spot and purchase tickets ASAP at the link above!

The new June show, The Sun: Our Living Star, will be presented at 7:00 PM on Tuesdays (6/6, 13, 20 & 27) and the 4th Friday (6/23) of the month in BASF Planetarium.

About the show: The sun has shone on our world for four and a half billion years. The light that warms our skin today has been felt by every person who has ever lived. It is out nearest star and our planet’s powerhouse, the source of the energy that drives the winds, our weather and all life.

WEEKEND FUN:

On Saturdays, visitors can attend a FREE Star & Space Story Time at 12:30 PM in the planetarium lobby, featuring children’s books like Luna Muna, The Astronaut with a Song for the Stars, Zoo in the Sky: A Book of Animal Constellations and Look Up With Me: A Life Among the Stars. (Please RSVP at the link above to let us know you’re planning to attend!)

Get tickets for our family-friendly Saturday Planetarium Shows at 1:00 PM! Titles this month include:

  • June 3: Perfect Little Planet
  • June 10: Earth, Moon & Sun
  • June 17: Accidental Astronauts
  • June 24: Dawn of the Space Age

MONTHLY SPANISH SHOW

Finally, make plans to join us on Thursday, June 29 at 7:00 PM for our ALL-SPANISH show! This month we will be showing Leyendas del Sol, Luna y Eclipse about the way ancient cultures attempted to understand and explain celestial phenomena.

SEE YOU THIS SUMMER AT BASF PLANETARIUM!

Explore space in April at BASF Planetarium!

It’s a busy month at BASF Planetarium in April, so don’t miss out on all the fun! Tickets to most planetarium shows are $5/adults and $3/children, except as noted below.

Kick off the month with us on Saturday, April 1 at Spring Astronomy Night from 6:00 PM – 10:00 PM. This FREE event will feature night sky viewing via a variety of telescopes and star talks in the planetarium dome every 30 minutes.

The brand new April planetarium show is Trailblazer of Heavens: Caroline Herschel and will be shown at 7:00 PM on Tuesdays (April 4, 11, 18 & 25) and the fourth Friday (April 28) in the planetarium. See how Caroline Herschel, working closely with her brother, helped discover Uranus and became the first woman to discover a comet. This tiny astronomer overcame challenges throughout her life and left her mark as a giant in astronomy.

Join us on Saturdays this month for family-friendly shows at 1:00 PM in the planetarium. The schedule is:

  • April 1 – Dawn of the Space Age
  • April 8 – Earth, Moon & Sun
  • April 15 – Astronaut
  • April 22 – Perfect Little Planet
  • April 29 – Accidental Astronauts

Finally, see the ALL-Spanish show Jupiter y Saturno: Reyes de los Planetas on Thursday, April 27 at 7:00 PM in the planetarium.

See the full schedule and purchase tickets on our website!

The Facts features BASF Planetarium’s Spring Astronomy Day

BASF Planetarium’s Spring Astronomy Day and family-friendly Saturday planetarium show were a hit this weekend, with a sold-out 1:00 PM planetarium show and a full house for the day’s free activities. The planetarium also played host to local space-lover and mom-to-be Tyra Patterson’s gender reveal party during the afternoon packed with activities. (She’s having a girl, by the way!)

The Facts attended the busy event, which was featured in the online version of Sunday’s (3/19/23) paper. See the full story and photos from the event at The Facts online!

Join BASF Planetarium in March for multiple shows & events!

BASF Planetarium has lots of programs and activities going on in March, so don’t miss out on all the fun! Tickets to most planetarium shows are $5/adults and $3/children, except as noted below.

The March show is Moons: Worlds of Mystery and will be shown at 7:00 PM on March 7, 14, 16, 21, 24 & 28. This show immerses viewers in the amazing diversity of moons and the important roles they play in shaping our solar system. Journey to the planets and their moons, and return home with newfound wonder about the dynamic and intricate solar system in which we all live.

Join us on Saturdays this month for family-friendly shows at 1:00 PM. The schedule is:

  • March 4 – Artemis: Forward to the Moon
  • March 11 – Earth, Moon & Sun
  • March 18 – Perfect Little Planet
  • March 25 – Astronaut

The planetarium will be open from 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM on Wednesday, March 15 during The Center’s Spring Break program, Spring Into Action! Join us for The Accidental Astronauts planetarium show and activities. Registration is $5 per person.

On Saturday, March 18, join us at Spring Astronomy Day from 12:00 PM – 3:00 PM for mini planetarium shows, safe solar viewing and astronomy-related demonstrations. This event is FREE!

Finally, see the all-Spanish show Fronteras on Thursday, March 30 at 7:00 PM in the planetarium.

See the full schedule and purchase tickets on our website!

Scholastic Bowl

As one of the most anticipated events of the year, BASF Planetarium’s Scholastic Bowl welcomes adult and high school teams to The Center for the Arts & Sciences’ Dow Arena Theater for an evening of trivia and fun. Teams of four work together and, over three rounds, answer a litany of questions concerning, art, science, pop culture and local interests.

Scholastic Bowl is the main fundraising event for the planetarium and relies on the entry fees, individual and corporate sponsorships for this event to help fund its educational activities throughout the year.

Date: February 23, 2023
  • Adult and high school student teams
  • Four members per team
  • Registration is $100 per team

REGISTER NOW!

BASF Planetarium’s February show focuses on constellation Orion

The February planetarium show will be Hunting the Depths of Orion, which takes a closer look at the well-known constellation and its significance across cultures. See the show on Tuesdays and the 4th Friday (February 7, 14, 21, 24 & 28) at 7:00 PM in BASF Planetarium.

 

Journey with us as we take a look at all the interesting deep sky objects that make up Orion. The constellation is a great tool for star-finding and navigation. Great telescopes of our age uncover star and planet forming nebulae. The stars of Orion helped crack the code of star distance and brought women into the field of astronomy.

 

Tickets are FREE to planetarium members; non-member tickets are $5/adults and $3/children. Get your tickets NOW!

Astronaut Planetarium Show

What does it take to become an astronaut? Take a journey from Earth into space and beyond. Experience a rocket launch from inside the human body, and float around inside the International Space Station. Narrated by Ewan McGregor, this exciting fulldome presentation lets you discover the perils that lurk in space as we subject ‘Chad’, our test astronaut, to everything that space has to throw at him.

TICKETS:

Adults: $5

Children (under 12): $3

Planetarium members: FREE

Astronaut Planetarium Show

What does it take to become an astronaut? Take a journey from Earth into space and beyond. Experience a rocket launch from inside the human body, and float around inside the International Space Station. Narrated by Ewan McGregor, this exciting fulldome presentation lets you discover the perils that lurk in space as we subject ‘Chad’, our test astronaut, to everything that space has to throw at him.

TICKETS:

Adults: $5

Children (under 12): $3

Planetarium members: FREE