Where to find the night sky at UMD: The Marshall W. Alworth Planetarium
The Starball is used to project the star displays in the Marshall W. Alworth Planetarium. Photo by the University of Minnesota Duluth.
The night sky is not the only place to see the stars in Duluth. Located on the first floor of Marshall W. Alworth Hall at the University of Minnesota Duluth is the Marshall W. Alworth Planetarium. The planetarium has existed at UMD for over 50 years, and it has provided informative and entertaining shows to students, community members, school groups, and more.
“I think it's all about community and outreach and trying to build positive interactions with the youth and even some adults. I think that we're about coming together and having a lot of fun and making a good show of it,” said Peter Bartlett, one of the student planetarians working at the planetarium.
Inside the planetarium is a full-dome theatre where the planetarians project the night sky, our solar system, and many other displays onto. The main piece of technology used in the planetarium is the Star Ball. “What that does is it projects light onto the dome ceiling to show our night sky. Sometimes we also like to use our Digistar system, so that's kind of like the Star Ball, but it's digital,” Bartlett explained.
The Marshall W. Alworth Planetarium's portable planetarium being inlated for an event. Photo by the University of Minnesota Duluth.
Throughout the week, there are multiple shows happening at the Marshall W. Alworth Planetarium, with different shows happening on different days of the week. All of the Wednesday shows are free, and UMD students get a discount on tickets for the other shows.
Wednesday shows cover many different topics from constellations, the northern lights, the moon, and more. Friday shows are live guided tours of our universe. There are two shows on Saturdays, a family show, and a feature program.
Along with the weekly shows, the planetarium also puts on other events throughout the year. On Friday, Sept. 19, the Marshall W. Alworth Planetarium will be hosting an event for the annual Statewide Star Party. There will be multiple planetarium shows, as well as other events like outside telescope viewing.
In October, the planetarium will be doing its annual Bloody Skies Halloween show, which is horror-themed and exclusively for UMD students. “If you were a student here, I would recommend hugely going to Bloody Skies in October,” Bartlett said.
The planitarium’s projector screen that displays the stars. Photo by. Sophie Keis
The planetarium also puts on private group visit events for schools, scout troops, birthday parties, families, and more. School field trips are one of the most common events, with schools in the Duluth area bringing classes to learn and experience the planetarium.
While schools often bring classes to the planetarium, the planetarium also comes to schools and other events. Using the portable planetarium, they can bring the experience to schools and community events.
There will be many shows and events happening at the Marshall W. Alworth Planetarium this year, and a lot of opportunities to experience the night sky, the constellations, and our planets. Even outside of campus, the planetarium is bringing fun and educational experiences to schools and helping to show the wonders of the sky.