Greek Mythology and Space Age History Planetarium Shows Are Back

Travis Laurance, director of the Harry C. Vaughan UW Planetarium  has a fun and diverse lineup for June. Showings vary from the history of Neptune, Venus and Mercury, to Greek mythology, space wonders, and spacecraft missions!

Ticket prices for students are $2 and $3 for non-students. Purchase your tickets at the Department of Physics main office Monday through Thursday from 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. and Friday from 8 a.m.-noon. The main office is located in the Physical Sciences Building (east of the health and sciences center and south of the geology building) room 204.

Doors open 20 minutes before each show. Show starts 8pm in the basement of the Physical Sciences building. There are only 58 seats in the Harry C. Vaughan University of Wyoming Planetarium, so get your tickets fast!

Renovations completed in November now provide more interactive presentations similar to an IMAX theatre. Additionally, the planetarium’s child-themed Saturday shows will move to Wednesdays at 11 a.m., and offered every other week.

The rest of the June planetarium schedule is as follows:

-- Greek Mythology, Friday, June 5, 8 p.m. Ancient civilizations used the night sky as a clock, calendar and story board for their unique mythologies. The 88 constellations that piece our sky together are dominated by ancient Greek mythology. This program will connect the dots to discover shapes and characters that lie in the constellations and help stargazers navigate the night sky. A STAR Observatory tour follows at 9 p.m.

-- The Space Age, Friday, June 12, 8 p.m. From Sputnik to Cassini, humans have made major strides in all areas of science due to spacecraft and their missions. Watch this show to learn the history of spacecraft, what they did and what they found in space. A Michael Jackson laser light show follows at 9:10 p.m.

-- Cool (and Hot) Stuff in Space, Wednesday, June 17, 11 a.m. Space is full of really interesting and beautiful objects. This show will explore some of these wonders by flying through our solar system and beyond to explore planets, stars, nebula and galaxies. This program will show off some of the beautiful objects in space.

-- Planet Series: Neptune the Mystic, Friday, June 19, 8 p.m. The most distant planet in the solar system has enchanted astronomers since its discovery in 1846. In the conclusion of the planet series, the many oddities of this great gassy blue giant -- such as its many unique moons, extreme surface climate and its extraordinary discovery -- will be discussed. A STAR Observatory tour follows at 9 p.m.

-- Planet Series: Mercury and Venus. Explore the two planets closer to the sun than ours, and attempt to explain what makes them different than Earth. Spacecraft sent to these planets also will be discussed. A Daft Punk laser light show follows at 9:10 p.m.

For more information, go to www.uwyo.edu/physics/ and click on “Planetarium is Open!” on the left-side navigation bar, call (307) 766-6150, or email physics@uwyo.edu.