Summer Planetarium Shows to be Held at Williams College

Media contact: Noelle Lemoine, communications assistant; tele: (413) 597-4277; email: [email protected]

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass., July 3, 2001 — The Milham Planetarium at Williams College announces its summer planetarium show: “Explorers of Mauna Kea,” which will be offered throughout the summer on Tuesday and Thursday evenings. Doors will be open at 8:00 for the viewing of exhibits in the MehlinMuseum, with the show beginning promptly at 8:30 PM. The planetarium show is given rain or shine. If the weather is clear, the show will be followed at 9:15 by a tour of the college observatory, which is located atop the Thompson Physics and Astronomy Laboratory. Shows begin Tuesday, July 3, and go through Thursday, August 23. The show is designed and given by Williams College students Gabe Brammer, Mike Gioiello, Kate Gibbons, Keck Exchange students Roban Kramer (Swarthmore), and Roger Cohen (Wesleyan), and Williams alumnus Dan Seaton, with Director of the Hopkins Observatory Prof. Jay M. Pasachoff.

One of the worlds largest observatories is located atop Mauna Kea on the big island of Hawaii. Telescopes at Mauna Kea, which include Gemini North and the two 10-meter Keck Telescopes, are revolutionizing our view of the universe. “Explorers of Mauna Kea” was provided by the Bishop Museum, Honolulu and will detail the history of the observatory. It will also show how astronomers are using the telescopes there to discover planets outside our solar system, the evolution and death of stars like our sun, and answer questions about the origin of the universe. The planetarium show will also include a tour of the constellations visible in the summer sky in Williamstown.

The Mehlin Museum of Astronomy currently features exhibits detailing new results from the Chandra X-Ray Space Telescope and Hubble Space Telescope and new discoveries on Mars. Also on display are several astronomical telescopes and clocks dating back to the mid-1800s, several meteorites, and other exhibits of astronomical interest.

The Milham Planetarium and Mehlin Museum of Astronomy are located just south of Route 2 in the Old Hopkins Observatory in the Berkshire Quad at Williams College. Seating space is limited and reservations for shows are highly recommended. Reservations can be made by calling (413) 597-2188. Due to renovations to the Williams College Museum of Art driveway (Lawrence Hall Dr.) on Route 2, visitors are encouraged to park in the visitor lot behind Thompson Chapel across the street from the Old Hopkins Observatory.

Sponsored by the Brandi Fund.

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