Yuri's Night - Dawn of the Space Age Celebration & Sky Viewing
Telescopes, Sky Viewing and FullDome Shows!
Yuri Gagarin became the first human to venture into space on April 12, 1961 ushering in the dawn of the space age. Tonight join us as we celebrate this historic event, learn more about our race to the Moon, and see what the future of space exploration holds. We'll celebrate with a full dome double feature, Dawn of the Space Age & Astronaut.
In Dawn of the Space Age you’ll watch an incredibly accurate historic reconstruction of Man’s first forays into space giving you the chance to become a first-hand observer to this exciting time in history.
‘Dawn of the Space Age’ begins with the launch of Sputnik and takes you on a visual tour of important Russian space history as well as the American Gemini, Apollo and Shuttle programmes. Along the way are glimpses of the Viking mission to Mars and the Voyager mission to the outer planets. The film also takes you to the International Space Station, the ‘X-prize’-winning private spaceship and talks about future Mars exploration. Who were the men and women who took part in these death-defying endeavours? Witness their drive and passion to explore, and their perseverance, in Dawn of the Space Age.
Next, see what does it take to become an astronaut? In 'Astronaut' experience a rocket launch from inside the body of an astronaut. Explore the amazing worlds of inner and outer space, from floating around the International Space Station to maneuvering through microscopic regions of the human body. Discover the perils that lurk in space as subject Chad, our test astronaut, to everything that space has to throw at him. 'Astronaut' is an experience like nothing on Earth. Find out if you have, 'the right stuff'!
Of course we'll look at the celestial highlights of April such as the Lyrid Meteor Shower, a beautiful pairing of Saturn and the Moon as well as Mars and the Pleiades. We'll even show you how to find Mercury in the sky. If it is clear, we'll have telescope viewing of the Moon.
Show Time:
Wednesday, April 12
6:00 p.m.
Target Audience: All Ages