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Take a fresh look at the old question: are we alone in the universe? Travel forward from the Big Bang, in search of those special places that might harbor life, including all of the planets in our solar system. It’s a beautiful scenic tour of our universe through the eyes of astronomers looking for clues about the origin of life and the development of intelligence. Join us in the search for life in the universe, exploring our solar system and looking for alien worlds among the distant stars. We find clues in the birth and death of stars, the formation of distant galaxies and the atoms and molecules of the cosmos.

The vistas are breathtaking from stellar birth clouds like the Orion and Trifid Nebulas to the death throes of Eta Carinae and the mysterious surfaces of nearby planets, their moons and rings. Join the search and enjoy the adventure.

Pink Floyd's legendary album returns, using all of the capacities of the Museum s high-definition, full-dome video system. Fantastic sound and incredible images create an unforgettable experience. It's not just a laser show, it’s a totally new digital revolution in sight and sound surrounding you, immersing you and losing you in the Dark Side of the Moon. This unique video experience is provided by Starlight Productions.

A great tragedy unfolds in the icy North Atlantic. Weather, ice, the sun and human error all contribute to the sinking of this unsinkable ship. Experience the Titanic’s last day to find out what went terribly wrong and discover how changing Arctic ice can prepare us for tomorrow.

Who were the wise men?

Travel to the Hills of Judea over 2,000 years ago and discover what the Star of Bethlehem miA famous story with a new ending? The Burke Baker Planetarium offers new insight in the search for the legendary holiday star. Who were the wise men? Were there just three? Did they follow a visible star to Jerusalem? Is December 25th Jesus’ real birthday? Star of Bethlehem answers these questions and more, as audiences search for a celestial object that could have led the wise men to the Christ child. A planet was called a “wandering star.” A meteor was a “shooting star.” And a comet was a “hairy star” because its tail looked like a beard. These are all candidates in our search.

The Burke Baker Planetarium has been telling the story of the Christmas Star for forty years. However, new evidence indicates that we may have been looking in the wrong part of the sky. Recently Dr. Michael Molnar, an astronomer and coin collector, found an ancient Roman coin minted in the first century AD in Antioch, Syria. The coin shows the zodiac pattern of Aries, the Ram, looking at a star over its shoulder. According to Marcus Manilius, a Roman astrologer, Aries was the constellation representing Syria. A very special celestial event in Aries could have been interpreted as a sign of the birth of a king in the regions dominated by Aries, the Ram—especially if the event occurred as Aries was rising in the East. Discover what this event might have been and how it could have guided the wise men to Jerusalem and on to Bethlehem.

Using the Planetarium’s digital star-field simulator, we will recreate the night sky at the date and time of Christ’s birth to see what the wise men could have seen and to discover if the Star of Bethlehem was a celestial event or a miracle.

ght have been- perhaps a planet, meteor, or comet.

A grandfather and granddaughter watch a solar eclipse from scenic cliffs overlooking their moon colony and discuss contrasts between the moon, the only home the granddaughter knows, and Earth, where the grandfather spent most of his life. Through his stories, the grandfather takes audiences on a wild canyon ride, to an ice age winter with a woolly mammoth, and to the time when the dinosaurs lived and died. Each experience begins with a telescope view of the dynamic Earth in stark contrast with the unchanging lunar landscape.

Earth’s Wild Ride is like many tales shared by grandparents over the centuries, except “the old country” is really another planet - always visible from the moon base, but totally unlike the granddaughter’s world. Adventure and appreciation for home fill this 20-minute journey back to the Earth.