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J. Watumull Planetarium

Hawaiʻi’s Gateway to the Stars

Join us in the J. Watumull Planetarium at Bishop Museum to connect with the environment and peoples of the Pacific region, the expanse of our universe, and the stories we pass on from generation to generation. Experience a show in our theater as an add-on experience to Bishop Museum’s daytime General Admission, as a standalone Special Evening Planetarium Show, or during various Programs and Events. All shows are ticketed; Tickets can be purchased upon arrival from the admissions desk at Shop Pacifica or online for special events. See below for currently scheduled showtimes.

Planetarium Showtimes

All planetarium tickets must be purchased in conjunction with general museum admission. Planetarium tickets are available for purchase on-site only.

Special Evening Planetarium Shows


The Stars Tonight
3rd Friday of every month

Special Evening Planetarium Shows

Navigating by the Stars
3rd Wednesday of February, May, August, and November

Astronomy Resources

Book A Field Trip

NASA's Earth Observing Mission

2024 Spring Planetarium Show Schedule

Sunday, March 10, 2024 through Friday, May 31, 2024  

Saturdays, Sundays, and select holidays 

March 26, 2024 – Prince Kūhiō Day
May 27, 2024 – Memorial Day 

10:30 AM – The Hawaiian Sky Tonight, 30 min    

11:30 AM – Wayfinders: Waves, Winds, and Stars, 45 min    

1:30 PM – Hidden Pacific, 45 min    

2:30 PM – Ngā Tohunga Whakatere: The Navigators, 45 min  

3:30 PM – Wayfinders: Waves, Winds, and Stars, 45 min    

 

Mondays, Tuesdays, and Fridays 

10:30 AM – The Hawaiian Sky Tonight, 30 min    

11:30 AM – Wayfinders: Waves, Winds, and Stars, 45 min    

1:30 PM – Hidden Pacific, 45 min    

3:00 PM – Wayfinders: Waves, Winds, and Stars, 45 min    

 

Wednesdays and Thursdays

Closed: No daytime public shows 

Special Schedule Days 

Saturday, March 9, 2024 (Mālama Hāloa Festival and Symposium) 

10:30 AM – Eyes on Island Earth, 35 min  

11:30 AM – Wayfinders: Waves, Winds, and Stars, 45 min 

12:30 PM – The Hawaiian Sky Tonight, 25 min 

1:30 PM – Wayfinders: Waves, Winds, and Stars, 45 min 

2:30 PM – The Hawaiian Sky Tonight, 25 min 

3:30 PM – Wayfinders: Waves, Winds, and Stars, 45 min  

 

Spring Break  

March 16-31, 2024 

Daily except Wednesdays Special schedules on Saturday, March 22 and Sunday, March 23 

10:30 AM – The Hawaiian Sky Tonight, 30 min    

11:30 AM – Wayfinders: Waves, Winds, and Stars, 45 min    

1:30 PM – Hidden Pacific, 45 min    

2:30 PM – Ngā Tohunga Whakatere: The Navigators, 45 min  

3:30 PM – Wayfinders: Waves, Winds, and Stars, 45 min    

 

Museum Early Closure Days 

Friday, March 22, 2024
Saturday, March 23, 2024
Saturday, April 6, 2024 

10:30 AM – The Hawaiian Sky Tonight, 30 min    

11:30 AM – Wayfinders: Waves, Winds, and Stars, 45 min    

1:00 PM – Hidden Pacific, 45 min    

2:00 PM – Ngā Tohunga Whakatere: The Navigators, 45 min 

 

Saturday, April 20, 2024 (Science and Sustainability Festival) 

Show schedule to be announced 

2023 Fall Planetarium Show Schedule
All showtimes are for Saturdays, Sundays, Mondays, Tuesdays (Sept. 30 through Dec. 15)
No daytime shows on Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays

10:30 a.m.

$3 with valid museum admission

Explore the wonders of the night sky in this fully live presentation! Join our guide to discover what stars, constellations, planets, and more can be seen in the skies above Hawaiʻi on the night of the show. Sky and universe simulated through Evans and Sutherland Digistar and GOTO Chronos II star projector.

25 minutes, all ages.

11:30 a.m.

3:00 p.m.

$3 with valid museum admission

This full-dome program puts you on the deck of the voyaging canoe Hōkūleʻa as you explore the nearly lost art and science of non-instrument navigation in Hawaiʻi and the Pacific. Produced by Bishop Museum in collaboration with Polynesian Voyaging Society and 1001 Stories.

45 minutes, recommended age 8 and up.

1:30 p.m.

$3 with valid museum admission

This program immerses you in the amazing diversity of moons and the important roles they play in shaping our solar system. Follow in the footsteps of astronauts to our silvery Moon, then venture beyond to unfamiliar and exotic worlds. Journey to the outer planets and their moons and return home with newfound wonder about the dynamic and intricate solar system in which we all live. This show was produced by the staff of the Charles Hayden Planetarium, Museum of Science, Boston, with distribution by Loch Ness Productions.

45 minutes, recommended age 8 and up.

Upcoming Planetarium Events

Daily Planetarium Shows Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. Click here to get your tickets.

March 2024
18
March
10:30 am11:00 am

The Hawaiian Sky Tonight

18
March
11:30 am12:15 pm

Wayfinders: Waves, Winds, and Stars

18
March
1:30 pm2:15 pm

Hidden Pacific

18
March
2:30 pm3:15 pm

Ngā Tohunga Whakatere: The Navigators

18
March
3:30 pm4:15 pm

Wayfinders: Waves, Winds, and Stars

19
March
10:30 am11:00 am

The Hawaiian Sky Tonight

19
March
11:30 am12:15 pm

Wayfinders: Waves, Winds, and Stars

19
March
1:30 pm2:15 pm

Hidden Pacific

19
March
2:30 pm3:15 pm

Ngā Tohunga Whakatere: The Navigators

19
March
3:30 pm4:15 pm

Wayfinders: Waves, Winds, and Stars

21
March
10:30 am11:00 am

The Hawaiian Sky Tonight

21
March
11:30 am12:15 pm

Wayfinders: Waves, Winds, and Stars

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There is an additional $2.95 fee per person for each daytime Planetarium show.

Bishop Museum members continue to enjoy FREE admission to the daily Planetarium shows; members just need to pick up a Planetarium show ticket first at the Admission Desk.

Tickets are for a specific show and are available onsite from 9 a.m. on the day of the show.

About the J. Watumull Planetarium

Bishop Museum’s Jhamandas Watumull Planetarium opened its doors on December 12, 1961. Originally called the Kilolani Planetarium, the Watumull Planetarium has served over six million visitors and students over 60 years of continuous operation. The Planetarium was instrumental in the recovery of the nearly lost art and science of traditional, non-instrument navigation in Hawaiʻi. Nainoa Thompson spent countless hours in the Planetarium with Will Kyselka and other Planetarium staff in the late 1970s learning how to read the night sky. We are honored to continue that legacy by serving as a training space for today’s navigators.

Our GOTO Chronos II optical star projector provides one of the most vivid, realistic recreations of the night sky available today, with 8,500 pinpoint stars and realistic, bright planets. Our Digistar 4K full-dome video system covers the entire dome in immersive video, allowing us to fly through the rings of Saturn, into the depths of the Orion nebula, out to the edge of the universe, and even simulate a voyage across the Pacific.

The Planetarium has 64 seats and serves 70,000 people a year. The planetarium focuses on programs about Hawaiʻi, blending live and prerecorded elements within each program.

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OPEN DAILY 9 AM – 5 PM

1525 BERNICE STREET
HONOLULU, HAWAI’I 96817

OPEN DAILY 9 AM – 5 PM

1525 BERNICE STREET
HONOLULU, HAWAI’I 96817

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