Productions
Fiske Planetarium leverages the prolific and talented academic community at CU Boulder to create compelling, entertaining, and scientifically accurate shows. We believe that our collective institutional knowledge and scientific research should be shared with the global community and we are pleased to offer our shows at no cost.
Over the last decade, we'veproduced 20 full dome films. As of 2023,750+planetariums in 70 countries and 48states, plus the Virgin Islands and District of Columbia, have downloaded our films.
NEW! Science through Shadows series of short films
Science through Shadows is a about using shadows to conduct astronomy research.
Over the next three years, our Fiske production team (in collaboration with the Chabot Science Center and the Michigan Science Center) will produce and distribute short videos about eclipses, occultations, and transits. All fulldome videos will be provided FREE in both English and Spanish, as well as 2D rectilinear format (for libraries, classrooms, and streaming platforms).
Join us as we travel with the Lucy Occultation project where citizen scientists play a crucial role for. On February 3, 2023, over 100 telescopes across two continents were deployed to observe the Trojan asteroid Polymele and its satellite during an occultation. Learn about occultations which occur when an object, like an asteroid, passes in front of a star, momentarily blocking its light and sending a shadow towards Earth’s telescopes.
On October 14, 2023, individuals and communities across North America will have the chance to see an annular solar eclipse. This type of eclipse is commonly referred to as a “ring of fire” eclipse and is different from a “total” solar eclipse. This video outlines the differences between the two, discusses best practices for viewing the eclipse, and prepares audience members to have an amazing experience on eclipse day!
A total solar eclipse is one of nature’s most incredible events. On April 8th, 2024, observers across North America will have the opportunity to experience this phenomenon. This video will teach audience members what to expect on eclipse day, how to safely view the eclipse, and why it will be worth it to travel to the path of totality!
What is an eclipse? Why do they happen? This edition of Science Through Shadows will dive into the mechanisms that cause an eclipse, address common misconceptions surrounding eclipses, and shed light on the differences between types of eclipses.
Fulldome Films produced by Fiske
5000 Eyes: Mapping the Universe with DESIis a fulldome film about the(DESI) whichis creating the most detailed map of our nearby universe using a unique instrument which can measure the spectra of many galaxies at once.The film was created by Fiske Planetarium in collaboration with DESI scientists.
Experience the largest structures in the universe as never seen before by flying through a portion ofDESI's initialdata. Dive into modern cosmology, plusthe scientific background and motivation for building a large map of galaxies. And, take a trip toKitt Peak tosee footage of the telescope in action while getting to know the amazing people from all over the world making this researchpossible.
Available in1K, 2K, and 4K. Run time 22minutes.
Fiske can provide a hardcopy of the script with timestamps, the transcription (closed captioning file) and the 5.1 surround sound mix. It will be translated into several languages, including Spanish, French, and Mandarin. The English version of the film will be released in February 2023, followed by the translations within a few months.
As we develop a much larger picture about our Earth as a whole, we are coming to see it as a complex, interconnected, remarkable world, and one that humans have impacted directly. Explore the role of carbon dioxide in our atmosphere, the natural temperature variations that the Earth has experienced over millions of years, and how humans are affecting our planet today.
Available inVR, 1K, 2K, and 4K. Run time 20minutes.
Supermassive black holes are found in most galaxies andwe're beginning to uncoverhow the merging of galaxies activate galactic centers.This engaging fulldome film wasproduced by Fiske Planetarium in collaboration with CU BoulderAPS Professor, Dr. Julie Comerfordand former graduate studentthrough support from an NSF award.
Available in1K, 2K, and 4K. Run time: 25 minutes
The Cosmic Origins Spectrograph instrument, the last instrument installed by the NASA astronauts, aboard the (HST) helps us understand what the universe was like billions of years ago and how it has changed over time. Featuring CU Boulder Scientist, Dr. James Green the film follows the path taken by light from a quasar --- journeys across the cosmic web, touching on concepts such as spectra, formation of the elements, the electromagnetic spectrum, the distribution of gas around galaxies, and many of HST's showcase images.
Join us in the exploration of this hidden universe as we decode the secrets to the origins of the cosmos.
Step out onto an ice floe in the middle of the Arctic Ocean, and watch and listen as scientists race the fading light to set up one of the most ambitious international climate collaborations ever, MOSAiC. The Multidisciplinary Drifting Observatory for the Study of Arctic Climate launched in September 2019. Led by the German Alfred Wegener Institute, the mission froze an icebreaker into the Central Arctic Ocean, to better understand the remote region and the role it plays in global climate and weather patterns.
Available inVR, 1K, 2K, and 4K. Run time: 26 minutes
Follow an international team of scientists from over twenty countries who embark on an epic year-long expedition to the Central Arctic, MOSAiC. The Multidisciplinary Drifting Observatory for the Arctic Climate (MOSAiC) team froze the German Icebreaker R/V Polarstern into the sea ice for a year. For a year, the team drifts with an ice floe and strives to understand the Arctic climate system and its future.
The 360-degree planetarium dome show is the first planetarium feature film that captures the entire year of the central Arctic climate, transcending the Arctic’s Polar Night and Day, and the experiences of the MOSAiC team as they face one of the most extreme and unique regions on our planet.
Available in 1K, 2K, and 4K. Run time: 27 minutes
Join the adventure as Fiske Planetarium takes you FORWARD! To the Moon.
from Crash Test World and MythBusters launches us on a journey beyond the Earth towards a sustainable future in space. NASA’s 21st century , named after the Greek moon Goddess and twin of Apollo, is the next step in our mission to explore the universe.
Available in 1K, 2K, and 4K. Run time: 26:30 minutes
Produced by Fiske Planetarium in collaboration with with support fromthe Network for Exploration and Space Science (NESS). Film made possible with funding by (SSERVI) and .Also, special thanks to for producing and donating promotional stickers.
Max (the dog) and a young girl named Tori take the first trip to the Moon since the Apollo era. Along the way, the story sets the stage for the more sophisticated science of the “Big Kid Box” sidebars, which cover topics including “Phases of the Moon,” “Wings in Space?,” and “Frisbees and Curve Balls on the Moon” — all thoughtfully explained so that grownups and children can learn together about science. Toward the end, Max and Tori’s trip proves so inspiring to people back on Earth that all the nations of the world come together to build a great Moon colony from which “the beautiful views of Earth from the Moon made everyone realize that we all share a small and precious planet.”
Worlds of Curiosity dives into the questions "What it would be like to live on an Earth with no Moon?" or "What if the Earth was tilted on its side (like Uranus)?" Join Mateo and Dr. Alicia Woods as they explore how our lives would be different on these Earths, talk about other hypothetical planets that could exist, and marvel at the even stranger worlds that astronomers have discovered beyond our solar system. Explore more at What-If Hypothetical Implementations in Minecraft or check out the Educator Guide.
Available in 1K, 2K, 4K, and 1080p. Run time: 15 minutes
Funded by the What-If Hypotheticals In Minecraft (WHIMC) National Science Foundation Grants #1713609 and #1906873.
NASA Explorations Series - short films
NASA satellites measure the changing levels of groundwater.
, review the educator guide, then download it for your planetarium.
A new wave of tiny, inexpensive satellites conducts amazing science.
, review the educator guide, then download it for your planetarium.
New Horizons tells us about Pluto and sets its sight on a new target.
, review the educator guide, then download it for your planetarium.
Humans have sent a spacecraft into the Sun’s atmosphere to study the corona and solar wind.
, review the educator guide, then download it for your planetarium.
Join us as we explore the legacy of NASA's Apollo Lunar Missions: Rocks from the Moon.
, review the educator guide, then download it for your planetarium.
The Orion spacecraft follows in Apollo’s footsteps, but with technology upgrades that will allow it to support up to six crew members for three weeks.
, review the educator guide, then download it for your planetarium.
The Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite - Join us as we investigate how researchers are discovering thousands of new worlds throughout our galaxy, using the faintest of signals.
, review the educator guide, then download it for your planetarium.
By looking at the universe in infrared light, astronomers are able to see objects that are otherwise invisible. The Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) is a modified Boeing 747 designed to carry an infrared telescope high above the surface to flyabove the water vapor low in the Earth's atmosphere.
, review the educator guide, then download it for your planetarium.
Trailers and Extras
NASA’s 21st century program to take humans forward to the Moon is called Artemis, after the Greek moon Goddess and twin of Apollo.Artemis is not an end in itself, but just the first step towards a sustainable future in space.
Fiske Planetarium and NASA will premiere a full length fulldome film about this grand venture in late 2021.
Watch the or of the 5-minute preview, then download it for your planetarium.
More than two dozen scientists, engineers, educators, and others from the University of Colorado Boulder and NOAA will join scientists from sixteen other nations for the international Multidisciplinary Drifting Observatory for the Study of Arctic Climate (MOSAiC) mission in 2019-2020.
Follow the journey by , then download it for your planetarium.
Transform your dome into an 8K moon phase.
, then download it for your planetarium.
How can we use the light from distant stars to search for potentially habitable exoplanets? In this short film, we explore how researchers are using the Hubble Space Telescope's Measurements of the Ultraviolet Spectral Characteristics of Low-mass Exoplanetary Systems (MUSCLES) Survey to study properties of red dwarf stars and how their intense x-ray and ultraviolet flares may affect the chemistry of planets' atmospheres. Differentiating the stars that may lead to false positive detections of biomarkers will help space telescopes such as the James Webb Telescope to know which stars are more promising to search for habitable worlds.
, then download it for your planetarium.