91Å®Éñ Planetarium Public Shows Calendar
Tuesday, September 2
One World, One Sky: Big Bird's Adventure
4:00 pm
Explore the night sky with your favorite friends from Sesame Street in Big Bird's Adventure: One World, One Sky. Follow along with Big Bird, Elmo, and their friend from China, Hu Hu Zhu, as they take you on a journey of discovery to learn about the Big Dipper, the North Star, the Sun, and the Moon.
Recommended ages: 3-6
Explore
5:00 pm
The sky has been an object of fascination for as long as humans have walked the earth. The movements of the spheres are ingrained in every culture on earth and have created mythologies, superstitions, and legends many people still recognize. Today we turn our scientific tools toward the heavens to get a new perspective of the universe and our place in it. Take a journey through time, from the most ancient astrologers, to the future of manned exploration of the solar system and see how our view of the cosmos has grown and evolved.
Recommended ages: 10 and up
Pink Floyd's The Wall - LAZERDOME
6:00 pm
Coupled with spectacular laser art and immersive effects, Pink Floyd's classic 1979 epic is sure to dazzle!
Recommended for adult audiences
Laser light shows feature loud music and flashing lights. These programs are not recommended for those with sensitivity to light or sound.
Wednesday, September 3
Magic Tree House: Space Mission
5:00 pm
Travel with the brother-sister duo Jack and Annie in their Magic Treehouse as they learn about how scientists uncover the mysteries of the universe. With the help of a real astronomer, astronaut, and of course, a pile of books, Jack and Annie are take non a wondrous journey of adventure and learning to the edges of the universe.
Based on the popular book series by Mary Pope Osborne.
Recommended ages: 5-10
The Great Solar System Adventure
6:00 pm
Join showman extraordinaire "The Great Schiaparelli" as he takes the audience on a death-defying space-time adventure within his wondrous Observatorium.
From the sun-scorched surface of Mercury to the icy expanses of Pluto and beyond, prepare to be subjected to the myriad dangers and wonders of our Solar System, on a breathtaking tour that reveals just how precious our home planet really is.
Be warned though, the Observatorium isn’t just for show. It will transport the audience right to the heart of some of the deadliest locations in our slice of the heavens. It’s going to take some fancy flying to get everyone back in one piece!
Recommended ages: 6 and up
The Beatles - LAZERDOME
7:00 pm
From their beginnings revolutionizing rock n roll, to their psychedelic era, this show visualizes the Beatles’ music with energy and beauty.
Saturday, September 6
Birth of Planet Earth
1:00 pm
Scientists now believe that our galaxy is filled with solar systems, including up to a billion planets roughly the size of our own. The film employs advanced, data-driven, cinematic-quality visualizations to explore some of the greatest questions in science today: How did Earth become a living planet in the wake of our solar system’s violent birth? What does its history tell us about our chances of finding other worlds that are truly Earth-like?
Recommended ages: 8 and up
Earth, Moon & Sun
2:00 pm
Earth, Moon & Sun is a fun and exciting full dome exploration of a huge range of heavenly phenomena. Lunar phases, eclipses, day and night, the sun and seasons are all explained with the help of a very confused and troublesome coyote, straight from Native American folklore. Through correcting Coyote's many misunderstandings, we can begin to unfold what's really going on in the sky.
Recommended ages: 6-12
Phantom of the Universe: The Hunt for Dark Matter
3:00 pm
The mysteries of Dark Matter still elude scientists to this day, but through new ground breaking technologies and scientific determination we are slowly uncovering the vast hidden parts of our universe. With the help of the Large Hadron Collider at CERN, one of the most ambitious engineering projects in human history, we are discovering new things about the universe every day.
Recommended ages: 12 and up
Skywatchers LIVE!
4:00 pm
Join one of our planetarium experts on a live guided tour of the stories, sights, and other wonders in the night sky. The constellations, star clusters, nebulae, and galaxies found overhead have been part of human consciousness for millennia, and today we have the knowledge and technology to explore all of them in great detail.
Stick around after the show for a live Q&A with our presenter! This show is updated almost weekly!
Recommended Ages: 10 and up
Parking Fee
Parking on-campus is $5 for the day, 24 hours/day, 7 days a week. The fee can only be paid through the Passport Parking phone app or and the parking permit is linked to your car's license plate number. We highly recommend parking in Lot E off of Merrimac Way (Google Maps "91Å®Éñ Lot E").
Public Star Shows!
Public programs are a cornerstone of the Planetarium's mission. Regular showings are offered on weekends so anyone can come enjoy a rotating schedule of breathtaking full-dome experiences.
For all public shows, please arrive 15 minutes before your scheduled show begins. There will be no late admittance due to safety concerns.
We advise against bringing children younger than 5 years old to planetarium programs. The planetarium theater gets very dark and the visuals can be alarming to young children. However, bringing young children for One World, One Sky Big Bird's Adventure is strongly encouraged!
All programs are approximately 45 minutes long.
Tickets are non-refundable and non-transferrable.
**The Planetarium adheres to a strict No Late Admittance policy. Once the doors have closed, the show is underway and must not be interrupted due to safety concerns.**
Skylark Speaker Series - Friday, September 26, 2025
Dr. Kyle Kremer, UCSD
The Dynamic Lives of Black Holes, Neutron Stars, and White Dwarfs in Globular Clusters
The dense centers of globular clusters are home to a whole zoo of exotic astrophysical phenomena. I study the unexpected events experienced by compact objects — black holes, neutron stars, and white dwarfs — within these dense stellar systems. Over the past decade, the groundbreaking detections of gravitational wave signals from merging compact object binaries by the LIGO/Virgo detectors have opened a new window to the cosmos. I will discuss ways these gravitational wave events may have originated in globular clusters, made possible by the unique dynamical activity of compact objects within these systems.
Beautifica
Beautifica is a 360 journey through worlds real and imagined, from mindblowing particle fields to unashamedly euphoric fantastic environments almost impossible to describe.
The brainchild of visionary composer James Hood working with some of the finest immersive animators on the planet, this family-friendly show is a feast for the senses, which will leave your spirit refreshed and your face grinning ear to ear.
Tickets Coming Soon
Gift Certificates
Whether it's for an astronomy enthusiast, a curious mind, or someone eager to explore the mysteries of the cosmos, our gift certificates are a stellar choice. Grab yours now and let the journey into the stars begin!