Edelman Planetarium

Local school children and residents are welcome to join the Rowan community in reaching for the stars in the University's Fredric and Jean Edelman Planetarium. Visitors can enjoy a wide variety of shows and special events designed to educate and entertain, advance viewers' understanding of the universe, and provide up-to-date astronomical information. Take some time to explore our world and worlds beyond!

The Planetarium, which is managed by the Department of Physics & Astronomy, is a multimedia star theater open to the public on Sunday afternoons for a small admission fee. The planetarium features entertaining and educational programs on astronomy. School groups from around the area visit the planetarium for field trips, as do Cub Scout and Girl Scout groups.

The mission of the planetarium is “to provide pedagogically sound and entertaining programs that educate the members of the Rowan community, the K-12 students of the region, and the general public. We advance the understanding of the universe and serve as a public resource for astronomical information. Programs include elements of other natural sciences, education, communications, and the fine and performing arts. The planetarium provides a classroom for multimedia learning, an outlet for creative expression, and a versatile domed theater.”

School and Youth Group Programs
The school program at Edelman Planetarium is designed to meet four goals: (1) Encourage students to feel the excitement of scientific knowledge and discovery; (2) Suggest to them that science is something that they can understand and even do; (3) Show them that the universe is more than what they can see on TV or in front of their houses; (4) Teach them facts about astronomy.

School shows generally include two sections. One section is a multimedia program, using the planetarium hardware to tell a story about some aspect of the universe. The second is a "live" presentation of the current night sky, including stars, constellations, planets, and interesting telescopic objects. For a description of the different shows, click here. The two sections together generally take up about an hour, sometimes a bit more. Scheduled show times are Monday through Friday at 9:30 and 11am, though they will try to accommodate requests for other times, such as early afternoons. Admission fees are usually $3, but fees for school and youth group shows are paid from a generous, ongoing grant from Jean and Ric Edelman. To make reservations, call Keith Johnson at 856-256-4389 during business hours or email johnsonk@rowan.edu.

Public Programs
Public shows are not given in the summer. They'll resume in the fall, perhaps as late as early October, after completing some computer upgrades in September.

School and other youth groups can make use of the planetarium in the summer. To do so, contact the director.

They'll open with a blockbuster called "Solar Superstorms" that will feature the latest scientific discoveries about the Sun, and the most dramatic computer-generated imagery of the solar interior ever produced. Bring your darkest sunglasses! Without the Sun, life on Earth would be impossible. But the Sun has a metaphorical dark side. It is, after all, a gigantic ball of nuclear fire in our sky, with a churning core at a temperature of 27 million degrees, and a radiating surface that is tossed about by energetic tsunami waves up to 60,000 miles high. At any moment, it can burp out enormous rivers of electrically-charged particles that can paralyze modern technology on Earth. “Solar Superstorms,” narrated by Benedict Cumberbatch, takes us deep into the inner workings of our star. Using the latest supercomputer simulations, the movie follows the path of hot magnetized gas from deep within the Sun, through its tangled journey through the Sun’s agitated outer layers, and on up to explosive magnetic eruptions reaching across space, so powerful they can shut down power lines and communications networks around the Earth. The last and largest of such superstorm was described by Richard Carrington in 1859; we’re due for another! This show is best watchable by children eight years of age and older.

Each of the full-dome movies is always preceded by a live presentation of the current night sky using the SciDome digital video projection system, with special focus on items pertaining to the movie that follows. A live presentation is generally not included in the family shows.

If You Go
Admission fees for regular public shows are $5 for Adults; $3 for Children, Rowan students with ID, and Seniors over 60.
Admission fees for family shows are $2 for everyone.

Note: They do not accept credit cards, Rowan cards, or BoroBucks!

Tickets for all shows go on sale half an hour before the show. They do not sell advance tickets before that time, nor do they take reservations. They will sell up to six tickets to one person if others in her party are not present.

The Edelman Planetarium is located inside Science Hall on the campus of Rowan University, located on the north side of Rt. 322 in Glassboro. For a campus map, visit www.rowan.edu/map. For more information, visit www.rowan.edu/planetarium.

8/11/15

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Author: R. Cohen