Written By: Ashley Jones, Arts & Entertainment Editor

On Nov. 7, VSU’s Planetarium hosted their second public program of the semester ‘The Lions, Bears, and Bulls of November.’ This show focused on our Moon and its phases, the “Winter Hexagon,” the Big Dipper, and lastly footage of the planets and constellations visible throughout the week. 

Initially finding the planetarium can be quite difficult for people not familiar with Nevins Hall, but people usually know they’re in the right place for the planetarium when viewing the table set up for party registration.  

After registration of the party, viewers will have to wait a few minutes for the previous show to complete. As a precaution viewers should always arrive early due to the planetarium only being able to seat 47 people per show, also tickets to the show are “first come, first served.” 

While viewing footage of Valdosta’s sky from the top of Nevins, audience members were able to see celestial bodies such as the planets “Neptune, Saturn, Uranus, Venus, Mars, Mercury, and dwarf planets like Pluto, and Ceres. 

The show also featured showings of constellation figures such as Andromeda, Aries, Pisces, Perseus, Cassiopeia, Cancer, Gemini, Ursa Major and Minor ‘and many more. 

If viewers weren’t familiar with our Moon and its phases, then during these showing viewers became knowledgeable in all aspects of our moon. The audience learned about the phases of the moon, lunar eclipses, and how the Earth’s shadow plays a part, and much more in-depth information.   

Additionally, if viewers are sensitive to dust, they may want to bring a water bottle or tissue, since the room can become dusty once the door is closed for the show. 

After the show, participants could head up to the planetarium’s observatory’s fourth floor to view Valdosta’s nightly sky. This interactive segment allows viewers to witness stars, or planets that were not showing earlier in the week. 

The Planetarium will present their last show of the semester on Dec. 5 between 6 p.m. and 9 p.m. Each show has an average duration of 50 minutes. The location of the planetarium is Nevins Hall, Room 3004. If attending, arrive 30 minutes before your show time due to limited seats and early party registration.