BGSU Planetarium

The Bowling Green State University Planetarium is a 114-seat public science theater serving BGSU students, area schools, and the public of northwest Ohio.  Set under a 40-foot dome, the state-of-the-art SciDome video system fills the dome with video that can immerse you in the cosmos and  can show the sky as it would be seen from any place on the Earth at any time. The Planetarium was opened in 1984 and extensively renovated in 2013 and 2014.  It is operated by the Department of Physics and Astronomy.

University Astronomy Courses use the Planetarium as a classroom year-round.

Public planetarium programs are open to all are given from September through early May each year. Programs feature a star talk showing the current evening sky followed by a multimedia planetarium show. Weekend programs are followed by stargazing at the Observatory on the roof, weather permitting. For the current schedule, see the flyer shown above.

  Area school classes and other groups can arrange presentation of planetarium programs between September and early May.  More than 100 different programs are available for all ages from pre-school through adults.  These include full-dome shows, classic multimedia shows, live interactive programs, and workshops.  Further information is available in the Teacher’s Guide.

The Planetarium and Observatory employ a team of students who help present public programs and stargazing sessions.

For location and parking instructions, you can use this detailed map (25 MB PDF) or this smaller map (0.3 MB PDF). Here is an interactive map of the entire BGSU Campus and a link to BGSU Parking Services for questions.

For further information, contact the Planetarium Director, Dr. Kate Dellenbusch by phone at 419–372–7850 or by email at dellenk@bgsu.edu

Special:

In Fall 2024, we are offering a special series of lectures on Thursday evenings on the topic "Expanding Boundaries," in connection with the production of Silent Sky by the BGSU Department of Theatre and Film. See the flyer below for titles, dates, and times of upcoming presentations. Silent Sky runs this week, Thursday-Sunday!  We hope you will attend and see the lobby exhibit put together by Theatre and Film along with some artifacts from Astronomy!  Break a leg, guys!

The next speaker presentation is Dec 5, 2024 at 7:30 pm in the BGSU Planetarium, it is preceded by the planetarium show "The Alien Who Stole Christmas" at 6:30 pm (you may attend either, or both; only the lecture will be viewable remotely by Zoom):