According to the Go Astronomy website, there are more than 18 permanent planetariums in Florida, including four in the greater Tampa Bay region. They include the Bishop Planetarium in Bradenton, The St. Petersburg College Planetarium in Clearwater, the planetarium at Riverview High School in Sarasota and the planetarium at Tampa's Museum of Science and Industry.
Now, Great Explorations Children’s Museum in St. Petersburg will be bringing inflatable planetariums to public school students at Pinellas County elementary and middle schools.
CEO Angeline Howell said they want to share the experience with those beyond the standard audience the museum serves.
“Not just our young kids that Great Ex, are but through all ages, including adults. I mean, I've sat through several shows now and it's incredible. You feel like you are in space,” Howell said.
It all began about a year ago, when an organization brought a traveling planetarium to the museum.
“And we watched our community, just in awe of the immersive experience of learning about space and constellations and the different planets. And it was just such a incredible experience that we felt that Great Ex could really benefit and our community could really benefit from something like this,” Howell said.
She said she heard the "oohs and "ahs" and "what is that" from the audience inside the dome.
"And so to hear that from a kid to a parent is really kind of neat," Howell said. "My daughter, she's in fifth grade, and she sat in on a show. And she said, 'I feel like I'm falling.' 'We're not falling. We are sitting on the ground right now.' You know, they hear about space, but this puts you in space."
Donation helps make the planetariums possible
A donor was at the museum that day and paid for the museum's purchase of two inflatable planetariums, to be used in the community and at schools throughout Pinellas County.
The moveable planetariums come with programs that include narration. But Howell said they also have access to resources from the National Science Foundation and NASA.
But that "inside the dome" learning is reinforced by the museum's staff.
"And then we have an interactive education team on staff who kind of makes it, close to home, we talk about telescopes and how they're created. And then we do a hands-on activity with the kids when they come out of the planetarium to really talk about how telescopes help help us see the stars and the planets," Howell said.
Howell said the planetariums will be at Great Explorations, on and off through Labor Day and she is looking forward to working with science teachers to help bring classroom lessons to life for their students.
But it will be a labor- and cost-intensive endeavor for the museum to take the show on the road. Howell said the planetariums are heavy and it will take a lot of staff to make the program work.
"Right now, we apply for grants to cover our outreach staff. And we will continue to accept donations and grants to be able to continue this into schools and in our community," Howell said.
If you’re interested in getting into the immersive planetarium experience, Howell suggests you follow Great Explorations Children’s Museum on Instagram, Facebook or Tik Tok to find out when the planetariums will be open.
