Seminar Schedule

Upcoming Planetarians' Zoom Seminars

2026

Dates and times subject to alteration depending on availability of presenters.

• 2026 Nov 20, at 12pm PST (3pm EST, 20:00 UTC), Planetarium Educators Workshop: Questioning Strategies. The workshop goals are to introduce a scheme for classifying questions, to practice identifying types of questions, and to think of how to design intriguing sequences of questions to ask during a planetarium program. The right questions can help increase the value of our dialog with audiences. This is Part 5 in the Planetarium Educators Workshop series that began in July 2025 and is derived from the Planetarium Educators Workshop Guide. Workshop facilitator is Alan Gould.

• 2026 Dec 11, at 2pm PST (5pm EST, 22:00 UTC) Night Sky Network: Connecting Communities with Kat Troche. NASA's Night Sky Network is a nationwide coalition of amateur astronomy clubs that partners with NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory to bring the wonders of space to communities everywhere, including educators, through hands-on activities, telescope viewing events, and free educational resources that connect them to NASA's latest missions and discoveries. Learn how you can incorporate these resources into your planetarium programming. Kat Troche is a New York City-based amateur astronomer and informal educator. She is the operations manager for NASA's Night Sky Network program and a coordinator at the Astro Society. Beyond her professional work, Kat is a NASA Solar System Ambassador and president of the Amateur Astronomers Association (AAA). When she isn't dragging her telescopes across the city, she takes them on the road, offering views of our universe to anyone curious enough to look up.

2027

• 2027 Jan 29 at 11am PST (2pm EST, 19:00 UTC), The Invisible Threat: Why Space Debris Matters to Everyone on Earth with Jason Crutchfield, author of Space Debris: Clearing the Final Frontier. Thousands of satellites and millions of pieces of debris now fill the space around Earth, creating challenges that extend far beyond the risk of orbital collisions. This presentation explores how the growing space debris environment affects the satellites that support communications, banking, navigation, weather forecasting, scientific research, national security, and everyday life. We will also examine the rapid growth of satellite constellations, the relationship between orbital activity and ground-based astronomy, emerging debris-removal technologies, and the policy and sustainability challenges that will shape humanity's future use of space.  We end with discussion and audience ideas for incorporation within the planetarium world.

• 2027 February 26

• 2027 March 26

• 2027 April 30

• 2027 May 28

• 2027 June 25

• 2027 July 30

• 2027 August 27

• 2027 September 24

• 2027 October 29

• 2027 November 19

• 2027 December 17