Saturday Public Show Schedule

NOTICE: The John C. Wells Planetarium is open for the 2024-2025 School Year for both Family Shows and Feature Shows. The public is cordially invited.

Come on most Saturdays during the JMU school year (closed during JMU Breaks) and see a FREE full dome show and hear a live seasonal star talk highlighting the Shenandoah Valley night sky. The monthly schedule of shows is listed below.

Family Shows are designed for families with young children (ages 4 to 8) in mind. The showtimes for Family Shows are at 11:00 am and 1:00 pm. Feature Shows are great for middle/high school students and adults. The showtimes for Feature Shows are at 2:15 pm and 3:30 pm. All are welcome to attend either show and the public is cordially invited.

All shows are free admission for the public and no tickets are needed.

Family Show Schedule - 11:00 am and 1:00 pm

SEPTEMBER	One World One Sky: Big Bird's Adventure
OCTOBER* (closed Oct 19 for 11:00 am show)	Magic Tree House: Space Mission
NOVEMBER* (closed Nov 30)	Legends of the Sky: Orion
DECEMBER* (closed Dec 21, 28)	Molecularium
JANUARY* (closed Jan 11 11:00 am show)	A Teenager's Guide to the Galaxy
FEBRUARY	Did an Asteroid Really Kill the Dinosaurs?
MARCH* (closed Mar 15, 22)	Earth, Moon and Sun
APRIL	Legends of the Sky: Perseus & Andromeda
MAY	This is Our Sky
JUNE	Open - Movie TBA
JULY	Open - Movie TBA

Feature Show Schedule - 2:15 pm and 3:30 pm

SEPTEMBER	Black Holes: To Infinity and Beyond
OCTOBER	Magnetism - Defending Our Planet, Defining the Cosmos
NOVEMBER* (closed Nov 30)	Stars of the Pharoahs
DECEMBER* (closed Dec 21, 28)	Two Small Pieces of Glass
JANUARY	Dynamic Earth
FEBRUARY	Wonders of the Universe
MARCH* (closed Mar 15, 22)	Secrets of the Sun
APRIL	Out There: The Quest for Extrasolar Worlds
MAY	Seeing: A Photon's Journey Across Space, Time & Mind
JUNE	Open - Movie TBA
JULY	Open - Movie TBA

*Closed during JMU Fall Break, Thanksgiving, Winter Break, and Spring Break.

Please note: The John C. Wells planetarium strives to bring cutting-edge science to JMU as well as to the larger Shenandoah Valley community. Hence, the planetarium staff presents established science that is based on consensus from the scientific community. We will present the scientific evidence on topics such as climate change, evolution, age of the Earth, the Big Bang, and the age of the Universe. All of our full dome shows, activities, and live star talks make reference and begin with the premise that the age of the Universe is 13.8 billion years old, and that our Sun and the Solar System formed ~5 billions years ago. Our staff will not alter their presentations when discussing what some may consider controversial science topics.