Shows

Journey to the Centre of the Milky Way

What lies at the heart of our galaxy? For twenty years, ESO's Very Large Telescope and the Keck telescopes have observed the centre of the Galaxy, looking at the motion of more than a hundred stars and identifying the position of an otherwise invisible object - the supermassive black hole at the centre of our galaxy.

Journey to the Centre of the Milky Way is the first short fulldome planetarium show produced in-house by ESO. Embark on this journey and travel faster than light, from the driest place on Earth, the Atacama Desert in Chile right to the centre of our own galaxy, where a black hole is consuming anything that strays into its path. 84 million stars will appear in front of your eyes, each hiding mysteries waiting to be solved. Are there planets around them, perhaps with moons? Do they have water? Could they harbour life?

Journey to the Centre of the Milky Way fulldome planetarium mini-show was produced in-house by ESO for its Planetarium and Visitor Centre, the ESO Supernova, due to open in 2017.

Running Time: 6 Minutes
Released 2014
©European Southern Observatory

IBEX: Search for the Edge of the Solar System

Join scientists who are investigating the boundary between our Solar System and the rest of our galaxy in IBEX: Search for the Edge of the Solar System.
Designed for visitors with an appreciation for the challenges of space science and a desire to learn more about science research, IBEX: Search for the Edge of the Solar System follows the creation of NASA's Interstellar Boundary Explorer (IBEX). Audiences will get an in-depth look at the mission and how IBEX is collecting high-speed atoms to create a map of our Solar System's boundary.
Narrated by two inquisitive teenagers, audiences will hear from the scientists and engineers that developed the IBEX mission and created the spacecraft, and get the latest updates on the mission's discoveries.

Running Time: 35 Minutes

From the Earth to the Universe

This stunning voyage through time and space conveys, through an arresting combination of sights and sounds, the Universe revealed to us by science. Read more about the movie here. The show was produced for the ESO Supernova Planetarium and Visitor Centre, to be opened in 2017, and for the worldwide planetarium community as free highres 4k download. The digital distribution was made possible through a partnership with CDN77.

Running Time: 30-minutes

Losing the Dark

Starry skies are a vanishing treasure because light pollution is washing away our view of the cosmos. It not only threatens astronomy, it disrupts wildlife, and affects human health. The yellow glows over cities and towns — seen so clearly from space — are testament to the billions spent in wasted energy from lighting up the sky.

Losing the Dark is a "public service announcement" planetarium show, a collaboration of Loch Ness Productions and the International Dark-Sky Association. It introduces and illustrates some of the issues regarding light pollution, and suggests three simple actions people can take to help mitigate it. The show gives planetarium professionals a tool to help educate the public about the problems of light pollution. Planetarians are uniquely positioned to teach audiences ways we can all work together to implement responsible use of lighting.

Running Time: 6 Minutes

Future of Human Space Exploration

NASA is entering an extraordinary new era. Today NASA looks forward to writing the next chapter of human space flight with its commercial and International partners: advancing research and technology on the International Space Station, opening low Earth orbit to US industry, and pushing the frontiers of deep space even farther. Please join us for the next exciting chapter of NASA's journey.

Running Time: 11 Minutes

International Space Station: Off the Earth, for the Earth, and Beyond

In 1998, assembly began in space on a satellite that would be second in size and radiance only to the Moon… NASA’s International Space Station. Completed in the 21st Century, the International Space Station’s role in the development of your future as well as that of the United States space program is enormous. Many things learned in space are already benefiting life right here on Earth. Ultimately this satellite will be the springboard enabling nations around the world to prepare to take the next giant leap past our Moon and into the Solar System. Today NASA and the International Space Station invite you to join us for the first opportunity in history to participate in the academic challenges and commercial opportunities available as NASA travels beyond Earth to understand and explore the Solar System.

Running Time: 12 Minutes

NASA's Journey to Mars

NASA is developing the capabilities needed to send humans to an asteroid by 2025 and Mars in the 2030s

Mars is a rich destination for scientific discovery and robotic and human exploration as we expand our presence into the solar system. Its formation and evolution are comparable to Earth, helping us learn more about our own planet’s history and future. Mars had conditions suitable for life in its past. Future exploration could uncover evidence of life, answering one of the fundamental mysteries of the cosmos: Does life exist beyond Earth?

Engineers and scientists around the country are working hard to develop the technologies astronauts will use to one day live and work on Mars, and safely return home from the next giant leap for humanity. NASA also is a leader in a Global Exploration Roadmap, working with international partners and the U.S. commercial space industry on a coordinated expansion of human presence into the solar system, with human missions to the surface of Mars as the driving goal. Follow our progress at www.nasa.gov/exploration and www.nasa.gov/mars.

Running Time: 10 Minutes

Oasis in Space

Embark on a startling and beautiful voyage through our universe, Galaxy and Solar System in search of water - a key ingredient for life on Earth. With a proven, audience-tested story, and a 95% viewer approval rating, Oasis in Space offers a new perspective on a substance of obvious importance to our planet.

Running Time: 24 Minutes
Released 2003
©2003 Spitz, Inc.

The Incredible Sun

Running Time: 12 Minutes

Two Small Pieces of Glass: The Amazing Telescope

While attending a local star party, two teenage students learn how the telescope has helped us understand our place in space and how telescopes continue to expand our understanding of the Universe. Their conversation with a local female astronomer enlightens them on the history of the telescope and the discoveries these wonderful tools have made. The students see how telescopes work and how the largest observatories in the world use these instruments to explore the mysteries of the universe.

While looking through the astronomer's telescope, the students, along with the planetarium audience, explore the Galilean Moons, Saturn's rings, and spiral structure of galaxies. During their conversation with the astronomer, they also learn about the discoveries of Galileo, Huygens, Newton, Hubble and many others.

Visuals will include actors green screened into a computer graphic star party environment with a variety of telescopes used by amateur astronomers. As the program progresses the show uses video and full dome imagery to present the story of the telescope and the astronomers who used them to make their dramatic discoveries. All skies and full dome video will transport the planetarium audiences to some of the largest observatories in the world, as well as places of historical significance. The soundtrack was recorded by the London Symphony Orchestra.

Running Time: 35 Minutes