Media representatives are invited to experience the virtual night sky in an immersive fulldome digital video portable planetarium, part of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, when it visits local students next week.
Media representatives are invited to experience the virtual night sky in an immersive fulldome digital video portable planetarium, part of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, when it visits local students next week.
Note: Because it is necessary to maintain a “night sky” level of darkness within the planetarium dome, flash photographs may be taken only before or after the planetarium program.
Wayne County
Northwest Elementary School
1769 Pikeville/Princeton Highway, Pikeville
Tuesday (March 27)
10 a.m.
In the live facilitated planetarium show “Surveying the Solar System,” Morehead’s PLANETS educator leads fourth- and fifth-grade students on a journey from our home planet Earth to its planetary neighbors that orbit our Sun.
11 a.m. and 1:10 p.m.
In the multimedia planetarium show “Wildest Weather in the Solar System,” students experience the most beautiful, powerful and astonishing weather on other planets — 1,200 mile-per-hour winds, lightning that is 10,000 times stronger than any on Earth, five-mile-high dust storms and more.
Rosewood Elementary School
126 Charlie Braswell Road, Goldsboro
Wednesday (March 28)
10:30 a.m.
Students experience “Surveying the Solar System,” described above.
11:45 a.m.
Students experience “Wildest Weather in the Solar System,” described above.
Eastern Wayne Elementary School
1271 New Hope Road, Goldsboro
Thursday (March 29)
10:30 a.m.
Students experience “Surveying the Solar System,” described above.
11:30 a.m.
Students experience “Wildest Weather in the Solar System,” described above.
The PLANETS (Portable Learning for All North Carolina’s Elementary Teachers and Students) Portable Planetarium Program is a science education outreach effort of Morehead Planetarium and Science Center at UNC-Chapel Hill.
PLANETS delivers a traditional planetarium experience directly to elementary schools across North Carolina. PLANETS planetarium shows and classroom activities are standards-based and interdisciplinary so teachers can take full advantage of this unique science experience. The PLANETS dome stretches 20 feet in diameter and uses cutting-edge digital technology to reach students who may not otherwise encounter Morehead’s informal science education.
The PLANETS program was created in 2009 and receives support from N.C. Space Grant, with additional funding from the Chatham Foundation and the University of North Carolina Provost Office.
PLANETS website: www.moreheadplanetarium.org/go/PLANETS
Morehead media contact: Karen Kornegay, (919) 843-7952, kck@unc.edu
News Services contact: Susan Hudson, (919) 962-8415, susan_hudson@unc.edu