The planetarium at Sacramento State’s science complex holds more than just science classes; it hosts a variety of weekend shows open to the general public, with an assortment of astronomical and musical themes.
The Sac State planetarium holds shows on a weekly or bi-weekly basis that cover topics like space exploration, black holes and even light shows backed by classic rock bands.
The planetarium held three shows on Saturday, Oct. 26, a James Webb Space Telescope show, featuring images from the telescope’s second year in orbit, along with two light shows set to music by Pink Floyd and Queen.
Freshman biological sciences major Laurey Hoefer said they had a soft spot for the Pink Floyd show.
“I’ve always loved the album,” Hoefer said. “It was one of the first rock albums I listened to, so it’s always had a place in my heart.”
The Pink Floyd show featured songs from “The Dark Side of the Moon” with accompanying digitally generated visuals, such as different shots of Saturn and the inside of a space station, that matched the lyrics and beat.
RELATED: Día de Los Muertos art exhibit brings color to the afterlife
Senior business analytics major Aaron Kennedy said that the Pink Floyd show drew him in.
“I walked by the planetarium one day, and I wanted to go in here, and I saw that they were playing ‘The Dark Side of the Moon,’” Kennedy said. “It was listed as the upcoming events I saw and I wanted to check it out.”
Junior computer engineering major Maxim Diab said he liked the visuals of the song “Time” most of all.
“I liked the clock mechanism going around,” Diab said. “I thought it was cool to have it zoomed in and showed what was actually going on.”
Earlier in the day, attendees were able to see a show featuring images from the James Webb Space Telescope.
The show featured images from the second anniversary of the telescope, such as the “Penguin and the Egg” and the “Pillars of Creation.”
Throughout the show, planetarium coordinator and host Kyle Watters gave context about the various images he showed.
“Many stars are born out of the same mother cloud of gas, like a litter of puppies or kittens,” Watters said during the show. “Prior to the James Webb Space Telescope, we weren’t able to see into a star nursery.”
During the Queen show, the visuals were comparable to a traditional laser light show one might see at a concert.
Graphics included psychedelic depictions of hands clapping to the beat of “We Will Rock You,” images of people in love for “Somebody to Love” and the band’s iconic image of Freddie Mercury with his hands crossed in front of him.
Planetarium student host Jason Johnson said he enjoys the shows as planned but allows the audience to choose an extra topic at the end to get the full experience.
“I enjoy Queen music a lot, so I’m happy that we added it,” Johnson said. “It is only 38 minutes, though, so I always have some extra content, so they feel like they got their full hour’s worth.”
Watters said after the show that Sac State students can attend the educational shows at no cost by going online to the Hornet ticket office. Additionally, the astronomy club hosts free shows in the planetarium on Tuesdays at 4:30 p.m.
