Additional Resources
We hope you’ll come see us at the planetarium on your next visit to Bishop Museum. For more learning opportunities and activities here are some websites, apps, and other resources we recommend. You can also email your questions to planetarium@bishopmuseum.org.
Astronomy Reference
Resource | Description | Age |
|---|---|---|
Earthsky | What to look for in the night sky | All ages, adult help for kids recommended |
Heavens Above | Website for tracking satellites, generating star maps, sun, moon, and planet information. | High School and older |
Sky and Telescope interactive sky chart | Web-based sky chart simulator. Input your location, date and time to see what’s visible in the sky. | All ages, adult help for kids recommended |
NASA
Resource | Description | Age |
|---|---|---|
NASA Home Page | Main landing page for NASA, the United States government space agency. | All Ages |
NASA Space Place | Kid-focused NASA website with information, games, activities, and more. | Ages 4 -12 |
NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day | Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer. | All Ages |
NASA Juno Mission | Images and information from NASA’s Juno mission studying the largest planet in our solar system. | All Ages |
Women at NASA | NASA site highlighting the extensive contributions of women. | All Ages |
Space Shuttle Model Glider | Printable make-at-home model of a space shuttle. | All Ages |
NASA Eyes Interactive Solar System Model | Interactive Solar System simulator web page. Can also embed on our website. | Grade 2 + |
NASA Eyes | Free downloadable program to explore the solar system and beyond. | Grades 2+ |
NASA STEM at Home | Activities for at home exploration and learning. | Ages 5+ |
10 things to do with NASA at home | All ages, adult help for kids recommended | |
Viewspace | Interactives and videos on Earth and Space Science. | All ages, adult help for kids recommended |
Apps & Software
Resource | Description | Age |
|---|---|---|
Stellarium | Free planetarium software to download and run on a computer. Simulate the sky from any location on Earth at any time. | All ages, adult help for kids recommended |
World Wide Telescope | Free planetarium software to download and run on a computer. Simulate the sky from any location on Earth at any time. | All ages, adult help for kids recommended |
Sky View (mobile and tablet) | App for sky viewing | All ages, adult help for kids recommended |
Sky Safari (mobile and tablet) | App for sky viewing | All ages, adult help for kids recommended |
Star Walk (mobile and tablet) | App for sky viewing | All ages, adult help for kids recommended |
Science On a Sphere Explorer (mobile and tablet) | App version of our Science On a Sphere exhibit by NOAA | All ages, adult help for kids recommended |
About the Planetarium
Bishop Museum’s Jhamandas Watumull Planetarium opened its doors on December 12, 1961. Originally called the Kilolani Planetarium, the Watumull Planetarium has served over six million visitors and students over 60 years of continuous operation. The Planetarium was instrumental in the recovery of the nearly lost art and science of traditional, non-instrument navigation in Hawaiʻi. Nainoa Thompson spent countless hours in the Planetarium with Will Kyselka and other Planetarium staff in the late 1970s learning how to read the night sky. We are honored to continue that legacy by serving as a training space for today’s navigators.
Our GOTO Chronos II optical star projector provides one of the most vivid, realistic recreations of the night sky available today, with 8,500 pinpoint stars and realistic, bright planets. Our Digistar 4K
full-dome video system covers the entire dome in immersive video, allowing us to fly through the rings of Saturn, into the depths of the Orion nebula, out to the edge of the universe, and even simulate a voyage across the Pacific.
The Planetarium has 64 seats and serves 70,000 people a year. The planetarium focuses on programs about Hawaiʻi, blending live and prerecorded elements within each program.
