Visitors to the Harry C. Vaughan University of Wyoming Planetarium will not only be treated to programs about Jupiter and Neptune under the dome in April. They will be able to go outside and observe the night skies as well, perhaps catching a glimpse of those planets.

“We begin April with an introduction to objects you can see in the April night sky and, from there, we continue our planet series with shows dedicated to Jupiter and Neptune,” says Travis Laurance, the planetarium’s director. “We also are excited to introduce a tour of our rooftop observatory after select shows. The audience will be invited to our rooftop after the planetarium show to look through our telescope. We will do this every other week.”

The optional Rooftop Telescope Tours, which allow visitors to look through a 16-inch STAR (Student Teaching and Research) Observatory telescope, will be offered on Fridays when no laser light show is planned. The informal tours are free, and guests may leave at any time during the tour.

Tickets for planetarium shows cost $2 for students and $3 for non-students, and can be purchased at the Department of Physics and Astronomy main office, located in Room 204 of the Physical Sciences Building, Monday through Thursday from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. and Friday from 8 a.m.-noon. Doors open 20 minutes before each show, where tickets will be sold if available. The planetarium, which seats 58, is located in the basement of the Physical Sciences Building.

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.

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