Smith Planetarium

Total eclipse of the Moon coming up in May, 2022: The 85 minutes of totality during the Lunar Eclipse will begin here in Chickamauga and in the Eastern half of USA and in South America on Sunday night, May 15th, 2022 at 11:29 PM EDT and last until 12:54 AM EDT on Monday, May 16th. Mid eclipse occurs at 12:12 AM EDT. (4:12 Universal Time).

Magic Tree House: Space Mission Smith Planetarium is presenting for the general public the "Magic Tree House: Space Mission" on Tuesday evening, February 22nd, 2022 at 7:30 PM. Wearing of face masks is encouraged. Admission price for public programs is $5.00 per adult and $4.00 per student. (Cash only - No credit Cards) Donations are appreciated. The program begins with a "live" survey of "the sky tonight." Then a STARGAZING program highlights prominent and easy-to-find ...stars and constellations of the Winter season. The "Magic Tree House: Space Mission" follows as the main feature. The planetarium is located at 409 Pond Springs Road, south of Chickamauga. GA. The Magic Tree House book series has been a perennial best-seller. It has been published in more than 30 countries and in 29 languages. The series is about the exploits of Jack and Annie, a brother-sister team. More than 70 million series books have been sold in North America alone. Now, the University of North Carolina - Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, in partnership with authors Will and Mary Pope Osborne, brings the blockbuster Magic Tree House franchise to fulldome theaters. In Magic Tree House Space Mission, a mysterious M sends the intrepid Jack and Annie on a fun-filled journey to discover the secrets of the Sun, Moon, planets, space travel and more. Aligned with elementary information skills and learning objectives, this beautifully-produced show is a winner with Magic Tree House fans of all ages. The program concludes with a short summary and with an opportunity for guests to ask questions. Public programs are presented on the first Sunday afternoon of each month at 2:30 PM and on the last Tuesday evening of each month at 7:30 PM, unless the date falls during a time period when schools are out on vacation or there is inclement weather. On Sunday afternoon, March 6, 2022, the feature program will be Earth, Moon & Sun. The Earth, Moon & Sun planetarium program was produced by Morehead Planetarium, University of North Carolina and was developed to help correct many misconceptions about the Earth, Moon and Sun. In this program, Coyote has a razor sharp wit, but he is a little confused about what he sees in the sky. Coyote is an amusing character (adapted from American Indian oral traditions) in this fast-paced and fun fulldome show that explores lunar phases, eclipses and other puzzles. Total time in the planetarium is about an hour. The Planetarium has a maximum seating capacity of 92 plus some space for wheelchairs. For more information call 706-375-3493. See more

Over the past few weeks I have received dozens of inquiries via text, phone and email about the status of the planetarium. Most of the questions being asked are about our public shows and field trip groups. Most of the people I have spoken with have been very polite and understanding.... some others, not so much. In fact, some people have been quite rude or just plain irate. I do understand that these are stressful times for all of us but I also feel that we must all remain c...Continue reading

Congratulations to American astronomer Dr. Andrea M. Ghez (UCLA) for winning the 2020 Nobel Prize in Physics. She was awarded the prize for her discovery of the supermassive black hole in the center of our Milky Way galaxy (dubbed Sagittarius A*). Subsequent observations have revealed that these objects reside in the center of most large galaxies. She has also helped pioneer the use of adaptive optics in astronomy, allowing large ground based telescopes to achieve (and in some cases even rival) the resolution of the Hubble Space Telescope. She is only the 4th woman in history to receive the Noble Prize in Physics. The other recipients of the prize were Reinhard Genzel (Germany) and Roger Penrose (UK). https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/physics/2020/summary/

Scientists have published the results of a recent study of the planet Venus. In the study, they detected the presence of phosphine gas (PH3) in the Venusian atmosphere. This finding is significant as PH3 is produced by living organisms here on Earth. Currently, there is no other known natural process (other than biological) that can produce PH3 in the atmosphere of a terrestrial (rocky) planet. PH3 production requires alot of energy. The atmospheres of gas giants (like Jupite...r) are a different story. This means the presence of PH3 in a terrestrial atmosphere is a very strong biomarker. The discovery of this gas in the atmospere of Venus indicates that some form of life may be present there. While exciting, this doesn't necissarily mean ET just yet. More study and closer examination of this finding is needed. It is possible that there is a non-biological source for this gas on Venus. There could be some exotic, unkown chemistry taking place in the Venusian atmosphere. After all, it is a pretty extreme environment... https://www.nature.com/articles/s41550-020-1174-4 See more

Remember to watch the peak of the annual Perseid Meteor Shower on the evening (& night) of Tuesday August 11th and early Morning hours of Wednesday August 12th, 2020. These tiny meteoroids enter earths atmosphere at a speed of 133,000 miles per hour and become meteors as they burn due to friction. They become visible at a height of ca. 55-60 miles and usually burn up before getting down as low as 50 miles high. Those you will see are within ca. 120 miles of you. More mete...ors are seen after midnight. I recommend watching from a dark area any time after 10:00 PM. There may be an occasional fire-ball. Usually the Moon interferes but not so much this year. The Moon is in its last quarter and will rise a little after 1:00 AM EDT. This meteor shower’s point of radiance is in the constellation of Perseus, hence the name. These Perseid meteors are from a stream of debris (small grains or particles) that originated from Comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle. That comet orbits our Sun every 133 years. Comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle was first discovered in the summer of 1862 and reappeared in late 1992. There are other meteor showers, but in my opinion, the next best Meteor Shower will be the Geminids on December 13-14. This information is subject to correction by my former student, NASA Scientist, Dr. Bill Cooke. It is nice when a teacher can be corrected by a student. Dr. Cooke is a NASA scientist whose main job is studying and working with asteroids and meteoroids. So, Stay tuned. Enjoy, James Alonzo Smith

Due to school closings and as a preventative measure to help slow the spread of Covid 19, the Smith Planetarium will be closed until further notice.

The Smith Planetarium will be presenting a General Public Show tomorrow night, Tues. Jan. 28th @ 7:30 PM. The program we are showing is called "From Earth to the Universe". It provides an excellent overview of the discipline of Astronomy. The show will include a guided tour of the night sky highlighting stars, planets, constellations and other astronomical objects of interest. Admissions is $5 Adult, $4 Child and free for BAS members. All are welcome to attend and we look forward to seeing you at the show!

For the 2019 holiday season the Smith Planetarium will be presenting our annual "Season of Light" program again this year. Our first show for the season was this past Sun. (Dec. 1st). In case you missed it, not to worry... there will be 6 more showings! The Season of Light program is a festive and informative planetarium show that explores the origins and traditions of Christmas, Hanukkah, New Year and the Solstice festivals of long ago. If you've ever wondered how Christmas ...trees, Santa Claus, wreaths, holly, mistletoe, yule logs & candles came to be associated with our holiday season, then this program will answer your questions. Admission is $5 adult, $4 child (< 4 yr. free) and current BAS members are admitted free with membership card. All are welcome to attend and we hope you will come out and join us for the show! Show times & dates are as follows: First Weekend Sat. Dec. 7th @ 7:30 PM Sun. Dec. 8th @ 2:30 PM Second Weekend Sat. Dec. 14th @ 7:30 PM Sun. Dec. 15th @ 2:30 PM Third Weekend Sat. Dec. 21st @ 7:30 PM Sun. Dec. 22nd @ 2:30 PM