Thursday, March 19 at 7pm the Delta College Planetarium is hosting a special one-night screening of Messengers of Time and Space, a new production that explores astronomical discoveries using a multitude of coordinated telescopes around the world.
This exciting show opens audiences to intriguing new discoveries made by an array of specialized telescopes and other instruments, unveiling the universe as never before. As we gaze upward with our unaided eyes, the sky appears as it did to our ancestors — a universe seemingly calm and tranquil. Yet, we also know space to be an active place, where dynamic events can be observed, including newly discovered asteroids, violent stellar explosions and colliding black holes. New technologies are exposing these fascinating “time-domain events” in unprecedented ways.
Messengers of Time and Space highlights how the International Gemini Observatory in Hawaii will work together with other telescopes, such as the Vera C. Rubin Observatory in Chile, to monitor the night sky for exciting astronomical events that change with time.
“This show comes to us from the National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory, or NOIRLab, supported by the National Science Foundation and its five affiliated observatories around the world,” says Mike Murray, astronomer and manager of the Planetarium. “NOIRLab enables the astronomy community to advance our understanding of the universe by exploring cutting edge astrophysics, including dark energy and dark matter, galaxies and quasars, the Milky Way, exoplanets and small bodies in our own Solar System.”
This show has a runtime of 30 minutes and is appropriate for ages 12 and older. Admission is free and seats are limited. Those in attendance will be asked to share feedback on the program. The Delta College Planetarium is located at 100 Center Avenue in downtown Bay City. For more information, visit the planetarium’s website or call 989-667-2260.
