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Families and students gathered in the planetarium last Friday night for the physics department’s monthly astronomy event. Assistant Planetarium Director Becky Lowder presented “The Planets,” an educational film about the origin of the solar system and how many of its planets and moons work.
The physics department sponsors events monthly and encourages people of all ages to attend.
“Sometimes we have outside speakers,” Planetarium Director Clayton Heller said. “Sometimes it is one of the astronomers from the physics department here. Other times, like this, we have a pre-produced movie that is accompanied by a star show and, of course, telescopes.”
Produced by Southeastern Planetarium Association, “The Planets” shows images taken by robotic spacecraft such as Cassini from Saturn, Galileo from Jupiter and Messenger from Mercury and uses them to explain many of the early events in the solar system’s history.
The film is narrated by Kate Mulgrew, who is well known for her role in “Star Trek: Voyager.”
After the film, Lowder demonstrated what the planetarium’s capabilities of by teaching the audience how to find constellations in the dark “sky.” Two telescopes were set up outside for those who wanted to get a peak at the moon and Jupiter.
Lowder also informed the audience of some of the current events regarding astronomy, including information about upcoming space missions and the opportunity to send your name to Mars.
Many children show up to these shows every month, and Friday night was no exception.
“I personally love astronomy and have loved it since I was a kid. It’s nice to be able to pass that on and spark interest in other kids,” said Charles Jones, a child and family development major who interns for the planetarium. “My advisor really loved me taking this class because I get to work with kids.”
The physics department can also schedule events for anything from church groups to field trips.
“Our main mission is outreach, which certainly involves children,” said Heller. “We have on average 8,000 to 10,000 K-9 students here every year.”
Georgia Southern students also attended the show. Some even expressed interest in attending future events as well.
“It was really cool to see how all the planets and moons were formed and how they function now,” GSU student Andrew Dotson said. “I do plan on going back again. I am really interested in the life cycle of stars and some of the bigger aspects of our universe. It’s definitely something people should check out if they have any curiosity about what else is out there.”
Some of the planetarium’s future events include “The Fate of the Universe” on Oct. 16 and the holiday show on Dec. 5. All events are free including the monthly shows and those specifically scheduled for group trips. Call or visit the planetarium for more information.
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