Show Library
Need help deciding what show to schedule? Checkout our show guide for the best pick for your group.
Astro Concepts
Starfish Jr (PreK)
Starry the Starfish and Red the Lobster compare the exploration of our universe with the exploration of our Earth’s oceans and it underscores the importance of our home’s last great resource: information.
25 min.
Trip Through Space (All Ages)
Trip Through Space takes an exciting tour of several constellations found in the Winter evening sky, the Solar System, stars, nebulae, galaxies and more. Click on the image for more information.
25 min.
The Edge (All Ages)
Written for a general audience, “The Edge” explores the Solar System’s “Third Realm” — the vast region beyond the orbit of Neptune. Learn about Pluto, Charon and more, as we follow the epic journey of the New Horizons spacecraft as it travels to the newly discovered Kuiper Belt Object, Arrokoth.
Running Time (25 min.)
Space Aliens: Looking for Life in the Universe (All Ages)
One of the oldest question’s humans have asked since looking at the sky has been if life exists beyond our planet. Follow cosmic clues from the ocean floor to a journey across the galaxy! What might extremophiles here on Earth tell us about the ability of life to thrive in other locations in our universe? Learn how new discoveries of exoplanets and water in our own solar system plays into this cosmic quest for other life forms beyond Earth. Find out how scientist are using new tools to look for places where life might be possible in our own galaxy.
Running Time (30 min.)
Galileo: The Power of the Telescope (All Ages)
Four hundred years ago, an Italian scientist named Galileo Galilei adopted an amazing new invention – the telescope – and systematically studied the heavens in detail for the very first time in history. Using this optical wonder, “The Father of Modern Science” ushered in a revolution of scientific discovery that continues to this day.
Throughout the ensuing centuries, our view of the cosmos, enhanced through larger and ever more sophisticated telescopes, has expanded dramatically, far exceeding the narrow view of the universe held by humanity for millennia before Galileo.https://www.youtube.com/embed/cgzMFebNxms?feature=oembed
In addition to examining his revolutionary studies of the sky, “Galileo: The Power of the Telescope” transports audiences back in time to Pisa, Italy, to witness Galileo’s earliest experiments with gravity and the laws of motion. Viewers will share in his greatest discoveries and experience how one man can truly shape the future of science.
This fulldome planetarium show is narrated by Dava Sobel, author of the award-winning biography “Galileo’s Daughter,” and is an original production of the Daniel M. Soref Planetarium at the Milwaukee Public Museum.
Running Time (30 min.)
Weather Wonders & Mysteries Revealed (All Ages)
Weather: Wonders & Mysteries Revealed This full dome show explores fascinating weather phenomena found on planet Earth.
Running Time (30 min.)
Black Holes (3rd-Older)
The immensity and power of black holes inspire wonder and curiosity. As we consider these stellar enigmas, the very nature of space time is warped as we approach. The mass of a large star has collapsed and compressed into an area so small that space and time have no meaning within its bounds. Our journey also visits super-massive black holes of unfathomable size at the central point of galaxies. These hidden monsters constrain their entire galaxies around them in a kaleidoscopic gravitational dance.
Running Time: 35 minutes
Saturn: Jewel of the Heavens (3rd-Older)
Perhaps the most elegant planet in our solar system, once place of mystery, the Cassini-Huygens mission to Saturn unveiled worlds of vibrant wonder. Discover the mystery of Saturn’s rings, explore moons with atmospheres and lakes and even frozen over oceans blowing geysers into space. See the differences in the makeup of the bodies around Saturn, an interacting system of gas giant and moons.
Sculpted surfaces of the moons from mission data were carefully overlaid with actual imagery from Cassini for this show. Fly along as if actually on the Cassini mission in person with incredible views of the cliffs, craters, geysers and more.
Running Time: 36 minutes
The Cosmic Recipe (3rd-Older)
The famous astronomer Carl Sagan once said: “If you wish to make an apple pie from scratch, you must first invent the universe.”
Though that may sound crazy, Sagan was onto something BIG! Want to know what? Pull up a chair at our Planetarium’s Periodic Table and learn the cosmic recipes that created everything in our world – even us! Discover how the Big Bang and the stars have cooked up the everyday elements we interact with every day—like the calcium in our teeth, the silicon in our smartphones, and even the carbon in our apple pies.
Explore the world of chemistry—the protons, neutrons and electrons! See how tiny atoms relate to the mammoth stars! Connect the physical worlds of the small and large in this engaging and inspiring show.
Running Time: 25 minutes
Exploding Universe (4th-Older)
Out of devastating events in the cosmos comes new creation. Explosive phenomena are responsible for the way we see the universe today, and not all of them happen on a grand scale.
When giant stars explode as “supernovas,” they seed the galaxies with heavy elements that make planets and life possible. Some collisions we’re only just now starting to understand. For example, when Black Holes collide, they can throw off some of the most energetic particles known, ripping and warping space as they go. But other “explosions” have profound effects as well, such as the beauty and power of supervolcanoes which have contributed to the transformation of our world into the life bearing oasis we now enjoy. The smallest of explosions, such as the forced impact of high energy particles, can echo the foundational events of the early universe.
As the universe has transformed into the structure we live in now, even the most elementary particles have endured. This show follows the path of one of these “particles,” a proton, as it participates in nature’s astounding events of rebirth and renewal.
Running Time: 30 minutes
Experience the Aurora (All Ages)
Over seven months in the Arctic Circle, our crews captured timelapse images of the Aurora Borealis with high resolution digital SLR cameras outfitted with fisheye lenses. The results are spectacular. For the first time the aurora has been captured as it was meant to be experienced, as a display that covers the entire sky. This immersive show shares the science behind the aurora and tells the story of our quest to find and photograph the aurora for wraparound display in fulldome theaters.
Running Time: 27 minutes
Back to the Moon (All Ages)
Accidental Astronaut (2nd-Younger)
Follow the adventures of Cy and Annie and their dog Armstrong as they embark on an unexpected journey into space! Explore the Earth, Sun and Moon system with a wise-cracking starship computer. Follow an asteroid as it crashes into the Moon. Bounce along with them on the lunar surface. Get up close and personal with a solar storm and gain a new appreciation of our home planet. “The Accidental Astronauts” is a space adventure for all ages.
Running Time: 30 minutes
The Making of a Star and Her Entourage (4th-Older)
Discover how human thought and understanding of the universe has changed dramatically over the centuries.
Produced by students and staff of Colgate University and funded by a Chandra X-ray Telescope grant by Colgate professor Jeff Bary.
Running Time: 30 minutes
Chasing the Ghost Particle (All Ages)
Deep in the ice at the heart of Antarctica, the biggest and strangest detector in the world waits for mysterious messengers from the cosmos. The detector is IceCube! The messengers are neutrinos–ghostly particles that give us tantalizing looks into world of exploding stars and black holes.
This show tells the incredible story of how an international team of scientists and engineers transformed one billion tons of Antarctic ice into a telescope. Building IceCube was a titanic endeavor driven by our human passion for discovery.
Audiences will witness stunning views of the South Pole, captivating animations of the IceCube detectors capturing a neutrino collision–and eye-catching views of the cosmos. CHASING THE GHOST PARTICLE: FROM THE SOUTH POLE TO THE EDGE OF THE UNIVERSE will take you on a journey you will never forget.
A co-production of the Daniel M. Soref Planetarium at the Milwaukee Public Museum and the Wisconsin IceCube Particle Astrophysics Center (WIPAC) of the University of Wisconsin–Madison.
Running Time: 30 minutes
One World, One Sky (PreK-Younger)
Follow Sesame Street’s Big Bird and Elmo as they explore the night sky with Hu Hu Zhu, a Muppet from Zhima Jie, the Chinese co-production of Sesame Street. Together, they take an imaginary trip from Sesame Street to the Moon, where they discover how different it is from Earth. One World, One Sky is a brilliant spectacle of light and color as the furry friends watch the stars twinkle over Sesame Street. Children attending the show can interact as they watch, drawing constellations and counting the time it takes the sun to set. One, World, One Sky is a production of Adler Planetarium, Sesame Workshop, Beijing Planetarium, and Liberty Science Center and was produced with major support from the National Science Foundation.
Perfect Little Planet (K-4th)
Imagine the ultimate space vacation! Discover our solar system through a new set of eyes – a family from another star system seeking the perfect vacation spot. Fly over the surface of the Dwarf Planet Pluto. Dive over the ice cliffs of Miranda. Sail through the icy rings of Saturn. Feel the lightning storms of Jupiter, and walk on the surface of Mars. Which destination would you choose? A solar system journey for space travelers of all ages! Produced by the Clark Planetarium, Salt Lake City, UT.
Running Time: 24 minutes
Flight Adventures (Ages 8-Older)
Dreams of flying, model aircraft and a young girl and her grandfather come together in this multi-media planetarium show about the science of aeronautics. Learn about famous inventors and aviators of the past and the pioneers who first revealed the 4 forces of flight. See images of aircraft past, present and future and imagine where flight might take us. Produced by The Children’s Museum Indianapolis in partnership with the Academy of Model Aeronautics and WFYI Productions with funding through NASA’s Competitive Program for Science Museums and Planetariums (CP4SMP).
Running Time: 22 minutes
Planetary Visions (4th-6th)
Make sure your seat belt is securely fastened as we blast off with “Toggle” on an adventurous and interactive tour of the Solar System! Detailed information about the planets, moons and Sun is provided as we fly through the various regions within our Solar neighborhood. Full dome digital production from Bays Mountain Planetarium.
Running Time: 35 minutes
Two Small Pieces of Glass (All Ages)
Galileo’s telescopic observations began a revolution, transforming our views of the cosmos and our place within. It is a revolution which,over four hundred years later, continues. Today you can attend star parties where amateur astronomers set up their telescopes for public viewing. Views through such telescopes would have amazed Galileo. Two Small Pieces of Glass puts you in the middle of a modern star party. Discover the wonders that even a small amateur telescope can reveal and learn about the scientists that made such views possible. Produced by Carnegie Science Center, ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center, and Interstellar Studios.
Running Time: 23 minutes
Ice Worlds (All Ages)
The delicate balance between ice, water and the existence of life has been a topic of scientific inquiry for generations. In travels to the Arctic and Antarctic regions of our planet, we’ll examine the exosystems that exist and thrive there and learn how their survival is connected with our own. Beyond Earth, we’ll see how the existence of ice shapes the landscape and the natural systems on other planets and moons in our solar system. Narrated by two-time Academy Award nominee for Best Actress, Emily Watson. Produced by Evans and Sutherland Digital Productions.
Running Time: 25 minutes
Dynamic Earth (All Ages)
The award-winning Dynamic Earth explores the inner workings of Earth’s great life support system: the global climate. With visualizations based on satellite monitoring data and advanced supercomputer simulations, this cutting-edge production follows a trail of energy that flows from the Sun into the interlocking systems that shape our climate: the atmosphere, oceans, and the biosphere. Audiences will ride along on swirling ocean and wind currents, dive into the heart of a monster hurricane, come face-to-face with sharks and gigantic whales, and fly into roiling volcanoes.
Running Time: 24 minutes
Stars: Powerhouses of the Universe (4th-Older)
Every star has a story. Some are as old as time, faint and almost forgotten. Others burn bright and end their lives in powerful explosions. New stars are created every day, born of vast clouds of gas and dust. Through every phase of their existence, stars release the energy that lights the Universe. Journey to the furthest reaches of our galaxy and experience both the awesome beauty and destructive power of stars.
STARS, narrated by actor Mark Hamill, is the Sudekum Planetarium’s first original full-dome, digital production. Adventure Science Center collaborated with the National Space Centre in Leicester, England, to create this stunning 26-minute show exploring the powerhouses of the universe and our relationship with the night sky throughout history.
Running Time: 26 minutes
Life a Cosmic Story (All Ages)
Life: A Cosmic Story begins in a redwood forest, with the sounds of wind and life. One redwood looms large, until we approach its branches and enter one of its leaves, adjusting our perspective to microscopic scales inside a cell. We see a pared-down version of its inner workings, learning about the process of photosynthesis and the role of DNA. This scene sets the stage for the story of life.
We then leap backward billions of years to the origin of elements themselves. The early Universe contained mostly dark matter, which drew hydrogen and helium together to form the first stars. The carbon and heavier elements required by living organisms came from generations of stars.
Running time: 25 minutes
Lamps of Atlantis (6th-Older)
Our search for the lost continent of Atlantis takes us on a journey through the astronomical knowledge and understanding of the ancient Greeks. How did the constellations get their names? What different patterns did ancient cultures see in the sky? Was Atlantis a real place? Did it really sink into the sea? We will uncover clues to help us solve this age-old mystery. Narrated by Terry O’Quinn, John Locke from TV’s LOST. From Evans and Sutherland Digital Theater Productions. Images Credit: Evans and Sutherland
Running time: 25 minutes
Live Solar System Tour (5th-Older)
Last updated: 8/6/2021