One World, One Sky: Big Bird's Adventure (Gr. PreK - 1)

Young audience members will be thrilled when they find themselves on Sesame Street with their famous friends, Big Bird and Elmo. The fun begins when Elmo's friend, Hu Hu Zhu, visits from China, and the three of them take the audience on an exciting journey of discovery to learn about the Sun, stars, and the Big Dipper. Elmo and Hu Hu Zhu blast off on an imaginary trip to the Moon, and when they return home to Earth, everyone discovers that no matter where we live, we all share the same sky. Download the Educator Guide.

Max Goes to the Moon (Gr. PreK - 5)

Max (the dog) and a young girl named Tori take the first trip to the Moon since the Apollo era. Along the way, the story sets the stage for the more sophisticated science of the “Big Kid Box” sidebars, which cover topics including “Phases of the Moon,” “Wings in Space?,” and “Frisbees and Curve Balls on the Moon” — all thoughtfully explained so that grownups and children can learn together about science. Toward the end, Max and Tori’s trip proves so inspiring to people back on Earth that all the nations of the world come together to build a great Moon colony from which “the beautiful views of Earth from the Moon made everyone realize that we all share a small and precious planet.”

Earth, Moon, and Sun (Gr. 2 - 5)  

This planetarium show explores the relationship between the Earth, Moon, and Sun with the help of Coyote, an amusing character adapted from Native American oral traditions who has many misconceptions about our home planet and its most familiar neighbors. His confusion about the universe makes viewers think about how the Earth, Moon, and Sun work together as a system. Native American stories are used throughout the show to help distinguish between myths and science.

Learn why the Sun rises and sets and the basics of fusion and solar energy. Examine the Moon’s orbit, craters, phases, and eclipses. Also, the show explores past and future space travel to our Moon and beyond. Download the Educator Guide.  

Experience The Aurora (Gr. 3 - adult) 

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. Winner of 2 Telly Awards.

Forward! to the Moon (Gr. 3 - adult) 

NASA’s 21st-century Artemis program, named after the Greek moon goddess and twin of Apollo, is the next step in our mission to explore the universe and land the first woman and person of color on the surface of the Moon. Using innovative technologies to explore more of the lunar surface than ever before, NASA uses what they learn on and around the Moon to take the next giant leap: sending the first astronauts to Mars. Join Kari Byron from Crash Test World and MythBusters as she launches on a journey beyond the Earth toward a sustainable future in space. 

Back to the Moon (Gr. 4 - adult)

After the Space Race of the 1960s, interest in the Moon quickly waned. The Google Lunar X Prize hopes to change that, reinvigorating interest in Moon exploration and colonization. This time, however, it’s different. A $30 million prize is being offered to all citizens of the world, not governmental space corporations, for achieving a successful Moon mission. The initiative is designed to instill in a new generation the wonders and importance of space travel and exploration.

CAPCOM GO! (Gr. 4 - adult) 

On July 20th, 1969, 600 million people worldwide gathered to witness a historic moment of human achievement broadcast live from the Moon.

“That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” -Neil Armstrong.

The world celebrated as the astronauts took their first steps on the Moon. But few people were aware of just how huge an effort it had taken to get them there. These Apollo 11 astronauts were just 2 of nearly 400,000 people who worked over ten years towards this goal. But how did they do it? What did it take to put humans on the Moon?

Birth of Planet Earth (Gr. 5 - adult) 

Birth of Planet Earth tells the twisted tale of our planet’s origins.

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?

Oasis in Space (Gr. 5 - adult)

Go on a startling and beautiful voyage through our universe, galaxy, and solar system, searching for water and water worlds like Earth. We begin by exploring Earth, with its vast oceans and plentiful water that makes life possible. One by one, we fly to the other planets and moons, discovering their characteristics, such as atmosphere, temperature, and composition. Spectacular images invite audiences to draw their own conclusions about the other worlds in our solar system and beyond: is there water out there? Is there life beyond Earth? Download the Educator Guide.

Sunstruck (Gr. 5 - adult)

Travel back in time to experience the birth of our Sun and solar system. Discover how the Sun came to support life, how it threatens life as we know it, and how its energy will one day fade away. Produced by the Michigan Science Center, Sunstruck! was funded by NASA. Watch the trailer.

Solar Superstorms (Gr. 6 - adult) 

A fury is building on the surface of the Sun - high-velocity jets, a fiery tsunami wave that reaches 100,000 kilometers high, rising loops of electrified gas. What’s driving these strange phenomena? How will they affect planet Earth? Find the answers as we venture into the seething interior of our star. Download the Educator Guide.

The Sun: Our Living Star (Gr. 6 - adult)

The Sun has shone on our world for four and a half billion years. The light that warms our skin today has been felt by every person who has ever lived. It is our nearest star and our planet’s powerhouse, the source of the energy that drives our winds, our weather, and all life. The passage of the Sun’s fiery disc across the sky — day by day, month by month — was the only way to keep track of time for countless past civilizations. Don’t be fooled by the terminology; although it is a typical dwarf star, the Sun consumes 600 million tons of hydrogen each second and is 500 times as massive as all the planets combined. Discover the secrets of our star in this planetarium show and experience never-before-seen images of the Sun’s violent surface in immersive fulldome format.

Totality! (Gr. 4 - adult)

Total solar eclipses are a rare and beautiful phenomenon, and in this new planetarium show, you will learn how eclipses happen, how to safely view one, and where the next eclipses occur. You will learn the history of eclipse watchers and how to observe safely. 

Two eclipses cross the US in 2023 and 2024 - an annular on October 14, 2023, and a total eclipse on April 8, 2024! Everyone in the continental US will experience at least a partial solar eclipse on April 8. Get ready for them both with this new production by Rice University and ePlanetarium!