See the stars at Augustana College’s John Deere Planetarium Spring Open House

Sharon Wren
·1 min read

Enjoy stargazing at Augustana College’s John Deere Planetarium during its annual Spring Open House on Saturday, May 11.

The planetarium is located at 820 38th Street and will be open from 8:30-10 p.m., featuring indoor and outdoor programs led by planetarium director Dr. Lee Carkner. Admission is free.

Space fans can see the mountains and craters of the moon through Augustana’s telescopes. There will also be a planetarium show and an opportunity to visit the Carl Gamble Observatory. The Getz-Rogers Gallery will be open, featuring images of celestial objects and a quarter-ton piece of the Canyon Diablo meteor.

John Deere Planetarium telescope
John Deere Planetarium telescope
Cryolophosaurus
Cryolophosaurus

The Fryxell Geology Museum will also be open and features one of the best collections of minerals and fossils in the Midwest. The museum is in Swenson Hall of Geosciences, next to the planetarium. The museum features a wall of glowing, fluorescent rocks; casts of a Tyrannosaurus rex skull and a complete 22-foot long skeleton of Cryolophosaurus, a large, crested carnivorous dinosaur discovered in Antarctica by Dr. William Hammer, a paleontology professor at Augustana at the time.

The observing areas in the planetarium are unheated, so visitors are advised to dress for the weather. Telescope views may not be possible in the event of cloudy skies, but the indoor programs will still be held.

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