Presented in partnership with the Physics and Astronomy Club, three planetarium shows were open to the public for free on Friday in the Physics Hall.
The projected images on the domed ceiling showed stunning views of our moon, Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars. It also showed the night sky above Ames free of light pollution, something you can only see in a planetarium.
The show described the atmosphere and surfaces of these planets. It also touched on the possibilities of humans living on Mars and the similarities to our own planet.
It’s an introductory show to our solar system. In March, the last couple of planets will be presented.
Before now, the planetarium has been pretty quiet due to the pandemic, which shut it down. Besides astronomy classes and a few shows, the planetarium hadn’t seen a sold-out crowd.
“I don’t think we’ve ever really filled the planetarium before unless it was like a special event,” Irina Plaks, a graduate student in astrophysics and presenter, said. “Like we had a group of students here of fifth and sixth graders, and I think they brought maybe around 15 students.”
To fill seats, the planetarium targeted a different demographic than college students; they advertised to families in Ames.
“I think we’re doing a good job of making shows meant for all ages, including kids,” Colton Addis, a senior in physics and a member of the Physics and Astronomy Club, said. “I think we’re doing a good job of like, hey, this is science that you all know. You can go out and look at the night sky and see this. And I think it’s gonna be successful for the planetarium.”
Along with the show, there were many activities just outside the planetarium. All these activities were geared toward a younger audience and taught about the laws of physics or the surfaces of planets in an engaging way to get kids excited about science.
Families were buzzing around the activities while waiting for the show to start.
If you are interested in becoming a presenter, the Physics and Astronomy Club can get you started.
“Our members, including me, volunteer at the show and help usher,” Addis said. “Then what we do is we train our members to run the show.”
Currently, the planetarium is sold out of all future shows, but they are looking to add more times to accommodate demand. Stay on the lookout for added dates here.
