February Program

Please note: There will be no Planetarium Night on Friday 14 February owing to the Valentine’s Day event.

• Big Astronomy (26 min) + WITST

  In Big Astronomy, journey to three world-class observatories in Chile’s rugged Andes Mountains and arid Atacama Desert – remote, extreme regions that happen to have the perfect conditions for astronomical research. Along the way, you’ll meet an inspiring cast of astronomers, engineers, technicians and support staff who keep these mega-machines running.

  Plus What’s in the Sky Tonight (WITST), a presenter-led tour through the night sky.

• Particle / Wave (60 min)

  Particle/Wave is an immersive multimedia exploration of gravitational waves at the point where poetry, video art, music and science intersect.

  First observed in 2015, gravitational waves are ripples in space-time, traveling away from exploding stars, merging black holes and other cosmological phenomena. Physicist Stephen Hawking called them ‘a completely new way of looking at the universe.’ A mind-expanding collaboration of artists and internationally renowned scientists, Particle/Wave offers a unique lens into this incredible discovery.

March Program

• Ticket to the Universe (45 min)

  

  Take a journey off planet Earth and beyond the stars.

  Under the 16m dome of the Melbourne Planetarium, you will enjoy a guided tour of our vast and incredible Universe in this entirely presenter-led show. Using the Planetarium’s distinctive technology and scientific data from astronomical organisations around the world, you will travel through the most complete and accurate 3D atlas of the Universe ever made.
  
  These datasets, which have been compiled by the American Museum of Natural History's Hayden Planetarium with support from NASA, clearly show the different scales and structures of the Universe.
  
  As well as travelling to the outer edge of the universe and back, the presentation also includes a look at the night sky. Discover which planets, stars and constellations are easily seen from a Melbourne backyard and how our view of the sky changes, night by night.

• Impossible Space (46 min)

  Impossible Space is an odyssey into the cosmos. A symphonic journey through real and artificial visual worlds, inspired by the spirit of science and discovery. This show interprets ‘outer space’ as more than just the night sky universe. Everything is space: it also unfolds in our everyday lives, within our brains, in a computer algorithm or in the unimaginably small building blocks of reality itself. These themes are artistically reimagined and adapted to create a unique audiovisual experience.

  The original music is closely coupled to the visuals and fuses epic orchestral film score with electronic synth-driven minimalism, ranging from moving melodic motives to transforming beats and vast, expansive soundscapes. The imagery ranges from fractal-mathematical nebulae to envisioned planets, from strangely (un)familiar AI-generated dimensions to nature on earth, and from abstract depictions of reality back to human shapes: A vortex of color, light, and sound inviting the audience on a fascinating ride through a profoundly impossible space.

Accessibility

Please view our accessibility page for general information. Contact our team on 13 11 02 or email us at [email protected] to discuss how we can support your visit.

A social story for this experience can be found on our Autism Friendly Museum webpage.