Presentations can be arranged for groups such as; scouts, classes, dorms, clubs,
office staff, birthday parties, etc.
(minimum of 20 people or payment of $60 please). We occasionally
offer public "walk-in" shows, check the calendar for dates and times.
The facility has very comfortable seating for 45 people plus room for about 10 more on the floor.
To schedule a presentation for a group, choose an open date and time on the calendar below,
and then use this handy
presentation request form
or contact one of our
current guides.
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How Much Does it Cost?
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Students
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$3.00
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If possible please arrange to deliver a single check for your entire group.
Make checks payable to Western Washington University.
For programs scheduled as part of a WWU course curriculum there is no fee.
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Non-Students
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$5.00
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For convenience you
can pay by printing and using this
payment remittance form.
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Most planetarium presentations are strictly for people 8 years and older.
However we do have programs designed especially for
groups of younger children, such as preschool daycare field trips.
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For more information about the schedule,
please email.
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Presentations in cyan.
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Astronomy in light gray.
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History in red.
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Western Washington University Planetarium
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Sunday
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Monday
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Tuesday
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Wednesday
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Thursday
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Friday
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Saturday
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This is a good month to view the Pleiades in Taurus.
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1
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2
Orionid Meteor Shower
Isaac Asimov born 1920
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3
Earth at
perihelion
closest to Sun 0.983 AU
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4
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5
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6
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7
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8
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9
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10
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11
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12
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13
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14
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15
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16
Ebenezer Christian
1:00PM
WWU Purchasing
4:00PM
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17
WWU ASTR326
5:00PM
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18
Carl Cozier
Lifeskills
10:30AM
Neptune 1.4 deg north of Venus
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19
Girl Scout
Troop 66
10:30AM
Sedro Woolley
12:00PM
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20
Pacific Science Center
12:00PM
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21
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22
WWU
CST Scholars
5:30 PM
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23
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24
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25
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26
Open to Public
7:00 & 8:30 PM
360.650.6146
for tickets
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27
Apollo 1 fire, 1967
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28
Space Shuttle Challenger lost, 1986
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29
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30
Whatcom Hills
Waldorf
12:00PM
Physics Club
Movie Night
7:00PM
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31
Cub Scout
Pack 80
6:30 PM
Explorer 1, first U.S. satellite launched, 1958
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The sword of Orion is where we find the famous Orion Nebula.
Another famous object, the Horsehead Nebula, is located near the belt of Orion
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Western Washington University Planetarium
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Sunday
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Monday
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Tuesday
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Wednesday
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Thursday
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Friday
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Saturday
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Brilliant Sirius can be located by drawing a straight line through the three belt
stars in the constellation Orion, down to the left, to the brightest star in the night sky.
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1
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2
Space Shuttle
Columbia lost, 2003
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3
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4
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5
Apollo 14 lands on the Moon 1971
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6
Ebenezer Christian
1:00PM
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7
Mercury at greatest eastern elongation:
18 deg.
(evening sky)
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8
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9
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10
Saturn at Opposition
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11
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12
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13
Bellingham High
Literature
8:30AM & 10:30AM
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14
Bellingham High
Literature
8:30AM & 10:30AM
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15
Bellingham High
Astronomy
10:30AM
Galileo Galilei born 1564
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16
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17
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18
Chinese
New Year
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19
Nicholous Copernicus born 1473
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20
John Glenn orbits Earth in "Friendship 7" 1962
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21
WCC A150
6:00PM
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22
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23
Public Show
7:00 & 8:30 PM
360.650.6146
for tickets
Supernova 1987A Observed
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24
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25
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26
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27
WCC A150
6:00PM
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28
Public Show
7:00 & 8:30 PM
SOLD OUT
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Zodiacal light is a pyramid of dim light seen in the west after evening twilight
and in the east after morning twilight. It is light scattered from the Sun by countless
micro-meteoroidal particles along the plane of the solar system.
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Western Washington University Planetarium
Western Washington University Planetarium
Western Washington University Planetarium
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Sunday
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Monday
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Tuesday
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Wednesday
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Thursday
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Friday
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Saturday
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The Eta Aquarids meteor shower peaks on May 5 but actully stretches from April 21 to May 12.
It produces about 10 meteors per hour at the peak.
Best viewing is after midnight.
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1
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2
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3
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4
WWU A103
WCC A150
6:00 PM
CANCELLED
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5
WWU A103
WCC A150
6:00 PM
CANCELLED
Eta Aquarid Meteor Shower
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6
WWU A103
WCC A150
6:00 PM
CANCELLED
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7
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8
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9
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10
Harmony Elem.
10:00
& 12:30
CANCELLED
Apollo 10 launched 1969
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11
Cedar Tree
10:30 AM
CANCELLED
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12
WWU
CST-AAUW
12:00PM
& 1:15 PM
CANCELLED
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13
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14
Lynden
Middle School
6th Grade
10:30 & 12:00
CANCELLED
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15
Lynden
Middle School
6th Grade
10:30 & 12:00
CANCELLED
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16
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17
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18
Western Showtime
Family Weekend
6:30 & 8:00 PM
(360) 650-3846
CANCELLED
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19
Western Showtime
Family Weekend
1:30 & 3:00 PM
(360) 650-3846
CANCELLED
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20
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21
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22
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23
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24
WWU A103
6:00 PM
CANCELLED
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25
WWU A103
6:00 PM
CANCELLED
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26
WWU A103
6:00 PM
CANCELLED
Skylab launched 1973
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27
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28
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29
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30
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31
BLUE MOON
Kendall Elem.
Grades 5 & 6
10:30 & 12:00
CANCELLED
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The second full moon in the same calendar month is sometimes called a "Blue Moon."
On average there are 41 calendar months in every century with a Blue Moon.
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Western Washington University Planetarium
Western Washington University Planetarium
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Sunday
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Monday
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Tuesday
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Wednesday
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Thursday
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Friday
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Saturday
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1
Galileo files report that Jupiter has moons, 1610
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2
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3
Earth at
aphelion
farthest from Sun
1.016 AU
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4
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5
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6
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7
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8
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9
WWU Kid's Camp
10:00AM
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10
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11
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12
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13
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14
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15
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16
Apollo 11 launched, 1969
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17
Pleasant Valley
Montessori
10:30AM
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18
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19
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20
Mercury at greatest west elong 20 deg
First humans on the Moon, 1969
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21
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22
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23
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24
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25
Galileo views
Saturn with a telescope, 1610
Summer School
College Academy
9:45AM
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26
Apollo 15 launched, 1971
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27
WWU
Admissions
9:30AM & 1:30PM
CANCELLED
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28
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29
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30
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31
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Your search for the Aurora Borealis may turn up the Airglow. This
fluttering glow is a kind of permanent aurora at certain wavelengths of the spectrum.
It occurs predominately in the lowest altitude range of the aurora in the atmosphere.
The airglow is always present, forming a major component of the light of the night sky,
but on rare occasions it is brighter in localized areas of the sky, visible as patches or bands.
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Western Washington University Planetarium
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Sunday
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Monday
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Tuesday
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Wednesday
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Thursday
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Friday
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Saturday
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The Perseid Meteor Shower peaks on the 12th with a rate of 50 to 60 per hour.
These meteors are actually debris left by comet Swift-Tuttle
which takes approximately 130 years to orbit the Sun.
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1
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2
Shuksan
Middle School
10:00AM
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3
Whatcom
Day Academy
12:00PM
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4
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5
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6
Mercury at greatest western elongation
(morning sky)
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7
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8
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9
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10
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11
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12
Perseid Meteor Shower
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13
Neptune at Opposition
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14
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15
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16
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17
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18
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19
Orville Wright born, 1871
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20
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21
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22
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23
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24
Public Show
THE ZODIAC
7:00 PM
360.650.6146
for tickets
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25
WWU Alumni
Golden Vikings
2:00 & 3:15 PM
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26
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27
Lighthouse
Christian Academy
6:00 PM
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28
Total Lunar Eclipse
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29
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30
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31
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Western Washington University Planetarium
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Sunday
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Monday
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Tuesday
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Wednesday
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Thursday
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Friday
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Saturday
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Capella sparkles with intensity
like any bright star but it sweeps along the ground as
it rises, staying longer in the dense turbulent air near
the horizon.
A lunar eclipse will be visible in most of Europe, Africa, Asia, & Australia.
See a solar eclipse from Brazil, partially in South America & Western Africa.
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1
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2
Moon occults Pleiades
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3
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4
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5
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6
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7
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8
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9
Uranus at Opposition
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10
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11
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12
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13
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14
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15
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16
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17
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18
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19
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20
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21
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22
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23
AutumnalEquinox
02:51 PDT
Neptune discovered 1846
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24
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25
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26
|
27
|
28
Public Show
THE ZODIAC
6:00 PM
360.650.6146
for tickets
|
29
Mecury at greatest east elongation
26 deg
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30
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One interesting autumn star is Mira, a variable star
in Cetus. At its brightest it is as bright as the North Star. At its dimmest it is invisible
to the naked eye. The whole cycle takes about 330 days.
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Western Washington University Planetarium
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Sunday
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Monday
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Tuesday
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Wednesday
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Thursday
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Friday
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Saturday
|
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A good month to view M31, the Andromea Galaxy.
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1
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2
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3
CST
Distinguished Scholars
5:30PM
|
4
Sputnik, first human craft in space, launched from Russia 1957
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5
|
6
College Courses
WWU A103 &
WCC A150
6:00 PM
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7
|
8
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9
|
10
LDS Youth Group
7:15PM
|
11
Cub Scout
Pack 222
10:00AM
|
12
College Courses
WWU A103 &
WCC A150
5:00 PM
|
13
|
14
Venus & Saturn 2.9 deg apart
Chuck Yeager breaks sound barrier, 1947
|
15
|
16
Planeteer
Training
1:00PM
|
17
|
18
College Courses
WWU A103 &
WCC A150
6:00 PM
|
19
Demo
SFCC
1:30PM
|
20
Hudson 7:00PM
Planeteer
Training
8:30PM
|
21
Orionid Meteor Shower
|
22
|
23
|
24
College Courses
WWU A103 &
WCC A150
6:00 PM
|
25
|
26
WWU Fall Family
Open House
7:00PM &
8:30PM
--- SOLD OUT ---
|
27
WWU Fall Family
Open House
1:00PM &
2:30PM
KVIK TV Prod. 3:45PM
|
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28
|
29
|
30
College Courses
WWU A103 &
WCC A150
6:00 PM
31
Vatican admits errors in trial of Galileo,
1992
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Orionid Meteor Shower peaks on the 21st.
Hourly rate reaches 20.
It's related to the eta Aquarids, a southern hemisphere shower in May.
Both are created by debris along the orbital path of Halley's Comet.
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Western Washington University Planetarium
|
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Sunday
|
Monday
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Tuesday
|
Wednesday
|
Thursday
|
Friday
|
Saturday
|
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In the south, the bright lonely star Fomalhaut shines in solitary splendor.
The Leonid Meteor Shower peaks on the 17th.
Maximum hourly rate typically reaches 10 to 15.
This shower is notable for greatly enhanced activity every 33 years.
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1
Bellingham
High School
10:30 AM
WWU A315
12:00 PM
|
2
"Laika"
First dog in space, 1957
|
3
|
4
Daylight Savings Time Ends
|
5
College Courses
WWU A103 &
WCC A150
6:00 PM
|
6
|
7
|
8
Three Rivers
Cooperative
10:30 AM
WWU A315
12:00 PM
|
9
|
10
|
11
Tycho Brahe observes supernova in Cassiopeia, 1572
|
12
|
13
|
14
Apollo 12 launched, 1969
|
15
BHC
Amazing Space
11:00 AM
Public Show
ORION
6:00PM & 7:30PM
360.650.6146
for tickets
|
16
First message sent to M13 by Arecibo radioscope, 1974
|
17
Leonid Meteor Shower
|
18
|
19
|
20
Girl Scout
Troop 2618
1:00 PM
Edwin Hubble born, 1889
|
21
|
22
|
23
|
24
|
|
25
|
26
|
27
|
28
|
29
Public Show
ORION
6:00PM & 7:30PM
360.650.6146
for tickets
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30
|
|
Western Washington University Planetarium
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Sunday
|
Monday
|
Tuesday
|
Wednesday
|
Thursday
|
Friday
|
Saturday
|
|
The Geminid Meteor Shower peaks on the 14th.
The maximum hourly rate typically reaches 80 per observer but in recent years has increased
to as high as 160. The small bits of debris creating this shower are
caused by an object named 3200 Phaethon, which is thought to be an extinct comet.
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1
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2
|
3
|
4
|
5
|
6
|
7
Attachmate Inc
3:30 PM
|
8
LDS Institute
7:00 PM
|
|
9
|
10
|
11
|
12
Lummi Nation School
1:00 PM
|
13
DeFilippo
7:00 PM
|
14
Whatcom Homeschool Assoc.
2:00 PM
Geminid Meteor Shower
|
15
|
|
16
|
17
St Paul
Episcopal
10:00 AM
First sustained powered flight at Kitty Hawk, NC, 1903
|
18
Mars nearest to Earth
54,783,381 miles
|
19
|
20
|
21
Winter Solstice
22:08 PST
|
22
|
23
Moon occults Mars for
northwestern Canada
|
24
Mars at
opposition
Apollo 8 sends Christmas message from lunar orbit, 1968
|
25
Isaac Newton born 1642
|
26
|
27
Johannes Kepler born 1571
|
28
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29
|
|
30
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31
|
The winter Milky Way can be traced from Cassiopeia in the north, through Auriga high
overhead, then south past Orion.
At closest approach Mars will appear 15.9 seconds of arc across.
When farthest away it is more than 7 times farther than when it is closest.
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Pluto at opposition