Join us for a special day of learning and exploration at the Planetarium. See meteorites come to life above your head in this exciting environment. Visit all the exhibits at the Planetarium with your free admission this evening. This event is suitable for all ages. Food will be available for sale outside on the UA Mall.
4 p.m. The Sky is Falling
The Fascinating Science and Crazy History of Shooting Stars
Christopher Cokinos, English
From folk tales that attributed meteors to the tears of saints to worries that a shooting star foretold death, humans have attributed deep symbolic meaning to lights passing in the sky. Join us for an entertaining and provocative overview of our attempts to incorporate meteors and meteorites into various cultures.
5:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m. Refreshments for Purchase
Refreshments, including hamburgers, hotdogs and frozen yogurt will be on sale on the mall outside of Flandrau courtesy of Pinkberry and UA Student Union. Cash only please.
6 p.m. Meteorite Hunters
Real-Life Adventures in Search of Meteorites
Christopher Cokinos, English
Weaving natural history, memoir and the stories of maverick scientists, daring adventurers, and stargazing dreamers, author Christopher Cokinos will be your guide for the evening. Hear captivating stories that take us from a driveway in Oregon where, a century ago, a rogue backwoodsman stole a 15-ton meteorite; to Arizona's Meteor Crater, where Daniel Barringer challenged establishment science, lost a fortune and died of a broken heart; and all the way to Antarctica where Cokinos himself helped to discover hundreds of meteorites until he confronted the limits to his endurance on the barren ice sheets at the bottom of the world.