Bishop Museum Adds New Galileo Planetarium Show
Honolulu, HI – In recognition of the International Year of Astronomy, Bishop Museum’s J. Watumull Planetarium is adding a new live interactive show, The Astronomy of Galileo. The new program will debut tomorrow, November 13th for an open-ended run.
The show explores ways in which Galileo used his discoveries to prove dangerous new idea: that the earth moves around the sun. Galileo’s vigorous promotion of this new “sun-centered” cosmic view would put the astronomer on a collision course with the Roman Inquisition.
“The world that Galileo was born into in 1564 was very different from ours. At the time, for example, almost everyone still believed that the earth stood still and that the sun, moon, and stars orbited it,” said Bishop Museum’s Director of Education, Exhibits, and Planetarium, Mike Shanahan.
The Astronomy of Galileo audience members will learn about the rush of discoveries made by Galileo between 1609 and 1613 with his telescope, from the mountains of the moon to the phases of Venus to the four large moons of Jupiter. Audiences will even get to simulate some of those discoveries during the program. For example, replicating Galileo’s 1610 observations of the moons of Jupiter and trying to estimate how long it takes each moon to orbit the giant planet.
International Astronomical Union and UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) chose 2009 as the International Year of Astronomy to celebrate the 400th anniversary of that world-changing moment in 1609 when Italian mathematician Galileo Galilei first turned a telescope on the night sky.
The Astronomy of Galileo, a 35-minute program, starts TOMORROW November 13, 2009. The program will show daily at 3:30 PM (except for Tuesdays and Christmas, when the Museum is closed). Planetarium admission is included in regular admission to Bishop Museum.
For more information about all activities included with Museum admission, please visit www.bishopmuseum.org or call 847-3511.
-pau-