Planetarium Content
Created by a team of expert producers, directors, astrophysicists, and visual artists, the Museum's planetarium shows are immersive, educational, and entertaining.
Bring cutting-edge scientific data and spectacular visualizations to your digital dome or giant screen and give your audiences an unforgettable window into the universe.
Typical Specifications
- Fulldome and flatsceen format (omnidirectional, uni, uni tilt)
- 4K and 8K* resolution at 30fps and 60fps*
- Average runtime of 25 minutes
- Marketing materials and educator resources
- Available languages include English, English Assistive Listening; English Audio Description, Spanish, Italian, French, German, Japanese, Portuguese, Chinese (Mandarin)
* For select space shows
© AMNH
© AMNH
© AMNH
© AMNH
© AMNH
© AMNH
If you're not interested in renting an exhibition or other content, but would like to visit the current exhibitions at the Museum, view our exhibitions and ticketing information.
Available Exhibitions
[MUSIC BEGINS]
[Zoom out to a field of stars. A circle around the moon, mapping its orbit.]
NARRATOR: Beyond the orbit of the moon-
[A yellow arc connects to a glowing object, zooming further in to reveal a space telescope.]
NARRATOR: -a million miles from Earth-
[Closeup on the space telescope, with a disc and body shaped like a top hat. Light and data its receiving is visualized in white rays.]
NARRATOR: -the Gaia Space Telescope is hard at work mapping the Milky Way.
[Spinning like helicopter blades, white rays reveal a brightened and colorful rendition of the Milky Way. A slow pan over sparkling stars and the outline of the Big Dipper constellation that breaks apart into a fast timelapse of stars moving across the map.]
NARRATOR: By feeding Gaia's data into computer models, scientists can simulate the past, present, and future-
[Simulation of the Milky Way galaxy rotating in a fast, whipping motion; a smaller galaxy colliding and moving through it. Visualization of the Oort clouds of multiple stars in motion, with our Sun at the center. A satellite sweeps past as it points to a faraway star.]
NARRATOR: -of our entire 200-billion-star galaxy.
[A hazy cloud around a bright point in space. A similar object (colored red) moves past it. As objects collide, multicolor “fireworks” suddenly erupt.]
NARRATOR: I'm Pedro Pascal.
[An arc shoots across space, a shining object with a long winding trail. A graph maps its orbit. A closeup at the center of the Milky Way, almost fire-like in color and movement.]
NARRATOR: Join me on a journey through our tight and stellar neighborhood into the bustling metropolis of the Milky Way.
[A meteor moves towards a shining star in the distance.]
NARRATOR: We'll witness some of the chance encounters that have shaped the destiny of our sun-
[Fast zoom over the shining purple sunshield of the James Webb telescope.]
NARRATOR: -and maybe even the course of life in the cosmos.
[MUSIC FADES]
[Credits roll.
Encounters in the Milky Way
Narrated by Pedro Pascal
American Museum of Natural History]
The Museum's newest Hayden Planetarium Space Show brings audiences on a journey through time to witness the chance encounters that have shaped the destiny of the cosmos.
Narrated by Pedro Pascal, Encounters in the Milky Way is the first AMNH space show to explore cosmic motion and its impact on our solar system. Powered by data from the European Space Agency's Gaia mission — which has mapped the precise positions, distances, and motions of nearly 2 billion stars since 2013 — the show reaches billions of years into the past and peers millions of years into the future. Along the way, audiences trace the paths of stars, comets, interstellar debris, and stunning gas and dust clouds, and witness the dramatic merger of our galaxy with the Sagittarius dwarf galaxy — shown here for the very first time.
Encounters also features breathtaking imagery from the James Webb Space Telescope, offering some of the deepest and most detailed views of the universe ever captured.
Show Information
- Format: Full Dome and Flatscreen
- Resolution: 8K, 4K
- Frame Rate: 60fps, 30fps
- Narrator: Pedro Pascal
- Timing: 25 minutes, can be ticketed on the half hour
- Available Languages: English, Spanish, Italian, French, Japanese, Portuguese, Chinese (Mandarin)
Encounters in the Milky Way was developed by the American Museum of Natural History, New York (amnh.org) with the major support and partnership of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
[MUSIC BEGINS]
[Credits roll.
American Museum of Natural History logo]
[A lunar spacecraft drifts closer, aiming to land on the Moon. A fisheye zoomout from the surface of the Moon. A radio space telescope passes by Titan, a yellow-orange moon near Saturn. Another golden-colored telescope scanning Saturn. Zoom into a busy asteroid field. A yellow, red, and green visualization of Earth's magnetic field.]
NARRATOR: I’m Lupita Nyong'o-
[A simulation shows Earth “sliced open” to reveal its hot, churning outer core. Jupiter, a white, brown and red striped planet, and it’s yellow moon, Io.]
NARRATOR: -and today we're on a mission to explore worlds beyond Earth.
[The European Space Agency’s Rosetta spacecraft scans Comet 67P/ Churyumov-Gerasimenko.]
NARRATOR: To find out if earth is unique in the solar system-
[A spacecraft is depicted sending colorful waves and receiving them as they bounce off the surface of a planet-like object.]
NARRATOR: -or if there are other active
[Recreation of the ESA’s Huygens probe landing on the brown surface and yellow-tinged “sky” of Saturn’s moon, Titan. A high-level, textured visualization of the surface of Mars. A spacecraft orbits a planet.]
NARRATOR: -thriving, even habitable worlds out there.
[MUSIC FADES]
[Credits roll.
Worlds Beyond Earth
Worlds Beyond Earth was developed by the American Museum of Natural History, New York.
amnh.org]
Is there really no place like home? Worlds Beyond Earth tells the story of the surprisingly dynamic nature of the worlds that share our solar system and the unique conditions that make life on Earth possible.
Narrated by Lupita Nyong'o, the show takes viewers on an immersive odyssey through our solar system, featuring stunningly detailed scenes drawn from real data — including unparalleled recreations of the alien landscape of Mars and a simulation of the evolution of Saturn's rings.
Show Information
- Format: Full Dome and Flatscreen
- Resolution: 8K, 4K
- Frame Rate: 60fps, 30fps
- Narrator: Lupita Nyong’o
- Timing: 25 minutes, can be ticketed on the half hour
- Available Languages: English, Spanish, Italian, French, Japanese, Portuguese, Chinese (Mandarin)
Worlds Beyond Earth was developed by the American Museum of Natural History, New York (amnh.org).
[MUSIC BEGINS]
[Dark space. The sun emerges from the other side of Earth, as if cresting over a horizon.]
NARRATOR: This is Tom Hanks.
[Slow zoom-out to show the sun shining on Earth.]
NARRATOR: There comes a time in each of our lives when it first dawns on us that we are not the center of the universe-
[A purple and pink visualization of the Milky Way in motion, with its glowing white center.]
NARRATOR: -that we are part of something larger than ourselves. As it happens to each of us, so it is happening to our civilization.
[Celestial mappings and measurements cover a field of stars.
NARRATOR: Right now, we are living in the Golden Age of Astronomy.
[A pan over Saturn, past its rings.
NARRATOR: We are completing the spacecraft reconnaissance of our solar system.
[Three glowing stars surrounded by asteroid-like objects against a dreamy, light blue background with waves of yellow and pink in the Orion Nebula.]
NARRATOR: We are using other kinds of light to observe the life cycles of stars and galaxies, revealing wonders never before visible.
[A web-like collection of galaxies against the black of space, a visualization of the universe.]
NARRATOR: We are mapping the grand structure of the universe, tracing its ancient past, finding our place in its great story.
[Zoom into a view of Earth in space, the Moon a small orb beside it.]
NARRATOR: We are becoming citizens of the cosmos.
[BELL TOLLS]
[Title appears “Passport to the Universe”.]
[MUSIC FADES]
[Credits roll.
Passport to the Universe was developed by the American Museum of Natural History, New York (amnh.org) in collaboration with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).]
Fly beneath the rings of Saturn, float through the heart of the Orion Nebula, and plunge into a black hole during this captivating introduction to cosmology.
Narrated by Tom Hanks, Passport to the Universe explores humanity's place in the cosmos, bringing audiences from Earth all the way to the edge of the observable universe.
This iconic space show was updated in 2017 with cutting-edge visualizations of the latest scientific data—including updated surface maps and new exploratory space missions—accompanied by the original script and music.
Show Information
- Format: Full Dome and Flatscreen
- Resolution: 8K, 4K
- Frame Rate: 60fps, 30fps
- Narrator: Tom Hanks
- Timing: 19 minutes, can be ticketed on the half hour
- Available Languages: English, Spanish, Italian, French, German, Japanese, Portuguese
Passport to the Universe was developed by the American Museum of Natural History, New York (amnh.org) in collaboration with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Major support for new version provided by the California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco.
[MUSIC BEGINS]
[Large expanse of space, circling around a glowing star. A slow zoom into our galaxy, rings visualizing each planet’s orbit around the Sun.]
NARRATOR: Just within the last 100 years, we humans - inhabitants of a small planet orbiting this unexceptional star - have learned where the galaxies are, what they're made of, and how they got to be that way.
[Trails of an infinite number of celestial objects in motion, stretched and warped, then suddenly gone in a flash of white and red.]
NARRATOR: We've discovered that the Universe was born in fire, 13.8 billion years ago-
[A still capturing the trails of celestial objects far away, resembling fireworks.]
NARRATOR: -and that it's been expanding and evolving ever since.
[An orange spacecraft – NASA's Galileo – flies over the surface of Jupiter, a star in the distance. It suddenly jerks back as its parachute is deployed.]
NARRATOR: But with new instruments on Earth and in space, we've begun to glimpse how much we still don't know about the cosmos.
[MUSIC SWELLS]
[A flyby view of the Milky Way, looking at both sides of its disc-like shape. Closeup of the ISS. Various visualizations of flashing stars and a temperature map of the cosmic microwave background (CMB). A colorful and explosive collision of two celestial objects. A black and grey web-like visualization of dark matter. A silver space telescope spins as it maps the area around it. An observatory on Earth marks a galaxy visible in the night sky. A sweeping view of Earth from space.]
NARRATOR: This is Neil deGrasse Tyson and I'm here to guide you through a century of discovery about the past, present, and future of our universe.
[Fast zoom-out from Earth in space to view the rest of the galaxy.]
[Title appears: “Dark Universe”.]
[Credits roll.
Dark Universe was developed by the American Museum of Natural History, New York (amnh.org) in collaboration with the California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco, and GOTO INC, Tokyo, Japan.]
The planets, stars and everything you can see are less than 5% of the universe. What’s the other 95%?
Narrated by Neil deGrasse Tyson, Dark Universe details breakthrough discoveries surrounding dark matter and dark energy – two great cosmic mysteries.
Through scenes drawn from authentic scientific data — including a NASA probe's dramatic plunge into Jupiter's atmosphere and vivid visualizations of unobservable dark matter — the show celebrates the pivotal moments that have forever changed our understanding of the cosmos.
Show Information
- Format: Full Dome and Flatscreen (2D, 3D)
- Resolution: 4K
- Frame Rate: 30fps
- Narrator: Neil deGrasse Tyson
- Timing: 25:15 minutes, can be ticketed on the half hour
- Available Languages: English, Spanish, Italian, French, German, Japanese, Portuguese
Dark Universe was developed by the American Museum of Natural History, New York (amnh.org) in collaboration with the California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco, and GOTO INC, Tokyo, Japan.
[Text appears “American Museum of Natural History presents”]
[Stars streaking by slowly.]
[TENSE, DRAMATIC MUSIC BUILDS]
[A large red planet with a glowing atmosphere.]
[A space telescope follows an asteroid that spins slowly.]
[Blue silky waves emanate from Earth and surround it, representing solar wind. Meteors shoot past it.]
[Two galaxies orbit each other, slowly drawn together.]
[Rings visualize the orbit of planets around a star.]
[Past a spacecraft, shimmering bands of light - the aurora borealis – glow from Earth.]
[An asteroid belt surrounds a small pinkish-red planet.]
[The meteor picks up speed, the galaxies draw closer to each other, solar flares emanate from the Sun.]
[CYMBALS CRASH]
[A smaller celestial body slams into another, causing a blinding explosion.]
[Meteors rain down onto Earth.]
[Text appears: “Cosmic Collisions. Narrated by Robert Redford”.]
[MUSIC FADES]
[Credits roll.
Cosmic Collisions was developed by the American Museum of Natural History, New York (amnh.org) in collaboration with the Denver Museum of Nature & Science; GOTO INC, Tokyo, Japan; and the Shanghai Science & Technology Museum.
Cosmic Collisions was created by the American Museum of Natural History with the major support and partnership of NASA, Science Mission Directorate, Heliophysics Division]
Delve into the destructive but beautiful collisions that fuel our universe. A radical change from our peaceful night sky, Cosmic Collisions presents the spectacular result of gravity pulling together planets, stars, and galaxies.
Witness the explosive encounters that ended the Age of the Dinosaurs and gave birth to new stars, but also created conditions essential for life on Earth — the Sun's warmth and ocean waves.
Narrated by Robert Redford, Cosmic Collisions invites audiences to experience an extraordinary vision of these forces that continue to affect our universe.
Show Information
- Format: Full Dome
- Resolution: 4K
- Frame Rate: 30fps
- Narrator: Robert Redford
- Timing: 23 minutes, can be ticketed on the half hour
- Available Languages: English, Spanish, Italian, French, German, Japanese, Portuguese
Cosmic Collisions was developed by the American Museum of Natural History, New York (amnh.org) in collaboration with the Denver Museum of Nature & Science; GOTO INC, Tokyo, Japan; and the Shanghai Science & Technology Museum.
Cosmic Collisions was created by the American Museum of Natural History with the major support and partnership of NASA, Science Mission Directorate, Heliophysics Division.
[MUSIC BEGINS]
[Text appears “American Museum of Natural History presents”]
[Stars streaking by. A cluster of stars in motion, their trails visualized behind them.]
NARRATOR: 13 billion years ago, the very first stars were born.
[A brilliant white star explodes, waves of red and white emanating in slow-motion.]
NARRATOR: They exploded in brilliant supernovas that blasted new elements into space, elements that are in our bodies today.
[In a ring of yellow, a blue epicenter of space filled with bigger, brighter stars and cloud-like formations. Beside a galactic ring, a purple field ringed in yellow and red, expands.]
NARRATOR: Witness this moment of cosmic wonder in Journey to the Stars, the spectacular new Hayden Planetarium Space Show at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City.
[Red and green line graphs map the movement of energy and the magnetic field of Saturn.]
NARRATOR: Join Academy Award winner Whoopi Goldberg and travel through space and time.
[Slow zoom out from Saturn to a cluster of stars, lit in blue.]
NARRATOR: Explore new celestial mysteries and discover the fascinating story that connects us all to the stars in Journey to the Stars.
[Text appears: “Journey to the Stars. An All-New Space Show. Narrated by Whoopi Goldberg”.]
[Credits roll.
Journey to the Stars was developed by the American Museum of Natural History, New York (amnh.org) in collaboration with the California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco; GOTO INC, Tokyo, Japan; Papalote Museo del Niño, Mexico City, Mexico, and Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, Washington, D.C.
Journey to the Stars was created by the American Museum of Natural History with the major support and partnership of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Science Mission Directorate, Heliophysics Division.]
Tour familiar stellar formations, explore new celestial mysteries, and discover the fascinating story that connects us all to the stars.
Narrated by Whoopi Goldberg, Journey to the Stars carries visitors through space and time to experience the life and death of the stars in our night sky — from the violent birth of massive stars and the explosive force of supernovae to the enduring glow of our own Sun.
Show Information
- Format: Full Dome
- Resolution: 4K
- Frame Rate: 30fps
- Narrator: Whoopi Goldberg
- Timing: 24 minutes, can be ticketed on the half hour
- Available Languages: English, Spanish, Italian, French, German, Japanese, Portuguese
Journey to the Stars was developed by the American Museum of Natural History, New York (amnh.org) in collaboration with the California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco; GOTO INC, Tokyo, Japan; Papalote Museo del Niño, Mexico City, Mexico; and Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, Washington, D.C.
Journey to the Stars was created by the American Museum of Natural History, with the major support and partnership of NASA, Science Mission Directorate, Heliophysics Division.