One of the side effects of working in a profession we feel passionate about is the desire to say 'yes' to a myriad of valuable projects. So many of them would feel worthwhile, valuable to our audiences, and we know we could do them well. But there are consequences to overcommitting. And it's not just a matter of 'quantity vs quality'. In this talk we'll examine the challenges of how to select the best projects for your operation.  

The laser system at the Cernan Earth and Space Center is very old, enough that acquiring newer laser content is a challenge. Knowing that it would be a while until we could obtain an upgrade, I decided to find another solution. Over the course of a year, I went from having no experience in laser production, to having a finished show. This talk will go over my process of creating Laser Chappell Roan, the Cernan Earth and Space Center's first original laser production since the mid-90's.  

Planetarians have expressed a strong interest in using the visualization capabilities of their domes to teach about climate science. However, feel less confident in their content expertise and ability to navigate controversy that surrounds the topic. Telling stories of hyperlocal impacts of climate change is a powerful and engaging way of teaching the public about climate science. Communities and individuals who are most affected by the climate crisis, as well as organizations working to mitigate its impacts, need ways of sharing their stories with their local communities. The Climate Stories project brought three planetariums and members of their local community together to co-create those hyperlocal stories about climate change in a way that leveraged the technical and immersive power of the dome. Case studies were conducted on these partnerships to characterize and understand their partnership as a way to build a model of collaboration that other planetariums could use in their communities. In this presentation, initial results from those case studies will be shared with practical tips for planetarians on how to spark new partnerships to effectively engage their communities on topics around climate change.  

As planetarians it's not just our job to teach others about science, but to engage them and make them excited to learn. We do this through story telling and exciting visuals on the dome. Art is a huge part of how we communicate science and in this talk we'll discuss the thoughts and process behind making art for Ritter Planetarium.  

Planetariums are inherently interdisciplinary spaces, making them well-suited to create unique learning experiences for classes and groups beyond the sciences. This past year, the Culp Planetarium hosted several visits and events across different departments on campus, ranging from low-effort to high-effort, by repurposing and adapting existing content. These experiences helped build new ties across campus while providing creative learning opportunities for students. This presentation will share examples of these collaborations and how we adapted resources to welcome new audiences, support student learning, and build campus connections.  

The Michigan Science Center is expanding our portable planetarium program. This IMLS funded program will allow us to connect our portable system to the fixed Penske Planetarium to connect rural audiences with space experts through domecasting. Join me as we talk about the program and how you can connect to our program. 

In 2026, the Kalamazoo Valley Museum planetarium team began running Expedition Solar System, a show from the Kamin Science Center's Buhl Planetarium and their Cosmic Cookbook show kit. The original show featured a physical robotic character, and the show kit included videos so that other sites could incorporate this character into their version of the show. The planetarium team at KVM has worked to adapt the show to suit our venue, including integrating the pre-recorded videos of Quasi the Robot, allowing us to 'talk' to Quasi during the show, maintaining its theatric, conversational origins. We will discuss the process of integrating the several dozen videos into a show that runs smoothly and easily for presenters on our Digistar 7 system, and explain how you can bring this show to your audiences with most of the difficult work already done.  

Science fiction is a massively popular literary and film movement, emerging from 18th and 19th century roots, it matured in the 20th century to provide reflections on rapidly changing society and technology. The popularity of science fiction media makes it one of the most common ways that the public and science professionals are first exposed to science concepts, and a major gateway for developing their interests. Despite this providing a gateway for enthusiasm, science educators have often leaned on a 'bad science' perspective with science fiction: focusing on where the genre makes scientific errors, which can make enthusiastic audiences feel dismissed or even insulted. Positive framing of science fiction movies can allow for in-depth exploration of their concepts, the progress and evolution of discovery, how science fiction inspired technological progress, and provide key context of science fiction as a legitimate literary movement. Multiple examples will be explored of educational programs delivered as introductions to public screenings of science fiction films, focused on positive perspectives and enthusiasm for the films, as well as sharing resources for delivering such programs in the OpenSpace open source planetarium software.  

Great ideas are rarely realized by one person or institution working alone. They grow through conversations with educators, funders, collaborators, community partners, and others who can help shape an idea into something with impact. This presentation gives you simple tips on developing a successful pitch that can help your next planetarium project grow. Participants will be introduced to a practical three-part framework on communicating a project idea clearly while inviting others to contribute. Attendees will leave with a flexible structure for developing concise, audience-specific pitches; identifying what they want a listener to do next; and avoiding common pitfalls. Learn how to quickly and effectively communicate your idea to give the right person a compelling reason to join you.