The Olympic Natural Resources Center invites the community to an interactive, engaging program on astronomy.

University of Washington graduate students from the Department of Astronomy will lead science-based experiences to discover more about the skies above.

To lend a hand, they’re bringing their mobile planetarium to Forks to provide a close-up view of the night sky. They will also be bringing a telescope and have other activities. Two programs will be held on Saturday, Sept. 13. A family focused program will be held 1-3 p.m., with a later program for adults from 7-9 p.m.

The planetarium shows are about 20 minutes long so groups of people can cycle through the performances or come back in for a repeat viewing!  In addition to the planetarium show there will be other activities including a Power-Point  presentation and the use of a telescope. The afternoon session will include kid-focused presentations and activities, while the evening session will include more in-depth presentations.

The presenters are Rodrigo Luger, Kristen Garofali, Nell Byler, and Grace Telford.

All these students  volunteer their time. The planetarium’s dome, created by the company Go-Dome, is an inflatable room resembling an igloo. At approximately 10 feet high and 20 feet across, the dome can fit about two dozen viewers. It is a fully functional planetarium that offers many of the same images as the high-tech planetarium located on university campus.

The planetarium runs Microsoft Research’s World Wide Telescope software on a laptop computer. A large hemispherical mirror projects the high density image from the back of the dome across three-quarters of its interior.

The planetarium brings modern astronomy down from space and into the schools and community, providing viewers an immersive experience of the Universe.  The ONRC is located at 1455 S. Forks Avenue, Forks. For additional information, contact Frank Hanson (360) 374-4556 or fsh2@uw.edu.