Astronomy fans flocked to the Museum recently to take part in an exciting line-up of activities to explore our galaxy and beyond for the Museum’s first Astronomy Evening.

Attendees enjoyed a special “Astronomy Music: Live Celestial Concert” by astronomer Dr. James Webb of Florida International University, and his student, David Farias. Dr. Webb and David performed “galactic” songs such as “Cosmos Theme,” “Here Comes the Sun,” and “The Grand Scheme of Things” on classical guitar, while astronomic images and song lyrics were projected onto the Planetarium’s dome.

The evening’s events also included a dramatic science theater presentation by the Museum’s Robert Dawson, who brought alive the words and discoveries of famous astronomer Tycho Brahe. Visitors also got to take a tour of the solar system on the Museum’s Magic Planet installation, enjoying 3-D views of the planets and the sun, and got a special sneak preview of the all-new Star Gazer TV program (produced by the Museum, WPBT2-PBS, the Kika Silva Pla Planetarium at Santa Fe College and the Cincinnati Observatory).

Visitors were able to get spectacular views of the moon and the planet Jupiter from our Weintraub Observatory, and then in the galleries, storytellers from the Miami-Dade Public Library System presented “Tales Under the Stars.” Kids and their parents had fun making their own comets in the “How to Cook a Comet” workshop, and one lucky winner went home with a brand new Celestron telescope.

“It was a sensationally stellar evening of astronomical fun,” said Mark Bennett, Planetarium and Visitor Services Manager. “It was really great to see everybody enjoying the hands on activities, the shows, and viewing the night sky.”

Special thanks to our sponsors for making Astronomy Evening a big success: Celestron Telescopes; Department of Physics, Florida International University; Miami-Dade Public Library System, and Southern Cross Astronomical Society.