Planetarium

Witness South Central Pennsylvania’s largest Planetarium and immerse yourself in the cosmos!

With Spitz’s SciDome XD projection system, audiences can travel anywhere in extreme definition. Audiences are surrounded by visuals where our movie-like shows make you feel like your part of the show, including the sensation of flying on Earth or through the universe.

Whether it’s the night sky from Lancaster, Pa to Sydney, Australia to the moons of Jupiter or traveling to the far reaches of the Milky Way Galaxy, you’ll see the universe in a whole new light, with the help of Starry Night Dome software.

Thanks to our 2015 Capital Campaign, our planetarium is no longer limited to astronomy and can now venture into the Earth Sciences. We can show you how the Arctic ice has changed over time, live locations of earthquakes, high definition satellite views of the Earth, and fly through the Grand Canyon with the assistance from The Layered Earth software.

Our expert staff of Planetarium Educators will be your guide, answer your questions, and personalize your experience.

MAX GOES TO THE MOON

Schedule:

Saturday & Sunday @ 11am

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.”

FROM EARTH TO THE UNIVERSE

Schedule:

Saturday & Sunday @ 2pm

Revel in the splendor of the various worlds in the Solar System and the ferocity of the scorching Sun. From Earth to the Universe takes you on a journey from our home to the colorful birthplaces, to beyond the Milky Way, to the unimaginable immensity of galaxies. Along the way, you’ll learn about the history of astronomy, the invention of the telescope, and today’s giant telescopes that allow us continue to probe ever deeper into the Universe.

Produced by Theofanis Matsopoulos & European Southern Observatory (ESO).

BIG BIRD’S ADVENTURE

Saturday, July 27 @ 11:00 am
Wednesday, July 31 @ 11:00 am

Suggested for children in Pre-K through 1st

 View Trailer

Join Sesame Street‘s Big Bird and Elmo as they explore the night sky with Hu Hu Zhu, a Muppet from the Chinese co-production of Sesame Street. Together, they take an imaginary trip from Sesame Street to the starry night sky of constellations and to the moon, where they discover how different it is from Earth.

NIGHT SKY TOUR –LIVE ASTRONOMY SHOW!

Saturday, July 20 @ 1pm

Suggested for children in 5th grade to Adults 

Join the North Museum’s Astronomy Educators to explore the wonders of the night sky in our live planetarium show, Night Sky Tour! Witness the night sky come to life as you learn about the constellations among the stars, planets currently visible, our place in the cosmos, and more! Each of our Planetarium Educators will bring their own expertise to the Night Sky Tour program, making each show a different experience.