Welcome to the Radford University Planetarium

We've come to the end of the summer and are closed until early September, once the regular fall semester starts for Radford University. We really enjoyed all of the summer groups that we were able to host, and look forward to seeing everyone this coming fall. Look for our regular shows to restart then, along with some special additional shows and events. 

Visitors: Free parking is available in Parking Lots C and B (next to the planetarium) after 6 p.m. on weekdays, and all day on weekends. For the Tuesday/Thursday afternoon shows there are a couple of meters in Lots C and B. However, it's best to park in Lot E across University Drive bridge and then take the 5-minute walk back over the bridge to the planetarium.

Planetarium location map
Planetarium location map
  • Location: Center for the Sciences room M75 (Main Street level). Enter through the doors from Parking Lot C. Click on the map for a larger image.
  • All shows are free and everyone is welcome to come join us! 
  • Seating capacity: 55 visitors (this is an absolute fire-code limit)
  • All shows include a tour of the nighttime sky using our full-dome projection system. Some shows will also have a full-dome, professionally produced show on an astronomical topic. The shows are described below.
  • No reservations required for the Tuesday/Thursday 4pm and 7pm shows, or the Saturday 10:30am shows. However, if you have a group of 35 or more please email/call ahead (24+ hours) to be sure there isn't another large group coming for the same show. 
  • We have hearing-assist receivers for our sound system--please bring your own earphones (1/16 inch [3.5mm] stereo jack).
  • No food/drinks allowed in the planetarium!

For more information, contact Planetarium Director Dr. Rhett Herman at rherman@radford.edu.

Schedule a Group Visit

During the regular semesters special showings may be arranged for groups with a minimum size of 20. If you have a group that would like to visit the planetarium, please contact Dr. Rhett Herman at rherman@radford.edu (email preferred) or 540-831-5441. Please note that we will try to accommodate these requests based on our availability for the date and time requested.

Quick Links

Upcoming Shows

  1. "Seeing! A photon's journey acrosss space, time and mind" »

    Tuesday Oct 16

    4:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.

    After a tour of the night sky, come join us for "Seeing!" Follow the journey of a single photon as it is produced in a distant star, before travelling across the vast expanse of space to land on someone's retina. This fulldome planetarium show explores some of the fascinating processes of the cosmos, from astrophysics to the biology of the eye and brain. Funded through a generous grant from ZEISS, the show is narrated by astronomer and science communicator, Neil deGrasse Tyson.

  2. "Cosmic Origins Spectrograph" »

    Tuesday Oct 16

    7:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.

    “Cosmic Origins Spectrograph” is a 28-minute full dome look at the Cosmic Origins Spectrograph instrument installed on the Hubble Space Telescope in 2009 during Servicing Mission 4, as well as the science behind its utility. The show covers the basics of spectroscopy, and touches on the processing of galactic and extragalactic gas. Other topics include the use of quasars as background light sources, cosmic evolution, and the development of the large scale structure of our universe.

  3. "Seeing! A photon's journey across space, time and mind" »

    Thursday Oct 18

    4:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.

    After a tour of the night sky, come join us for "Seeing!" Follow the journey of a single photon as it is produced in a distant star, before travelling across the vast expanse of space to land on someone's retina. This fulldome planetarium show explores some of the fascinating processes of the cosmos, from astrophysics to the biology of the eye and brain. Funded through a generous grant from ZEISS, the show is narrated by astronomer and science communicator, Neil deGrasse Tyson.

  4. "Cosmic Origins Spectrograph" »

    Thursday Oct 18

    7:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.

    “Cosmic Origins Spectrograph” is a 28-minute full dome look at the Cosmic Origins Spectrograph instrument installed on the Hubble Space Telescope in 2009 during Servicing Mission 4, as well as the science behind its utility. The show covers the basics of spectroscopy, and touches on the processing of galactic and extragalactic gas. Other topics include the use of quasars as background light sources, cosmic evolution, and the development of the large scale structure of our universe.

  5. Saturday kids show: "One World, One Sky: Big Bird's Adventure" »

    Saturday Oct 20

    10:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.

    Especially appropriate for younger audiences, ages 3-7 in particular! The show follows Sesame Street's Big Bird and Elmo as they explore the night sky with Hu Hu Zhu, a Muppet from Zhima Jie, the Chinese co-production of Sesame Street. Together, they take an imaginary trip from Sesame Street to the Moon, where they discover how different it is from Earth. One World, One Sky is a brilliant spectacle of light and color as the furry friends watch the stars twinkle over Sesame Street. "One, World, One Sky" is a production of Adler Planetarium, Sesame Workshop, Beijing Planetarium, and Liberty Science Center and was produced with major support from the National Science Foundation.

  6. "Seeing! A photon's journey across space, time and mind" »

    Tuesday Oct 23

    4:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.

    After a tour of the night sky, come join us for "Seeing!" Follow the journey of a single photon as it is produced in a distant star, before travelling across the vast expanse of space to land on someone's retina. This fulldome planetarium show explores some of the fascinating processes of the cosmos, from astrophysics to the biology of the eye and brain. Funded through a generous grant from ZEISS, the show is narrated by astronomer and science communicator, Neil deGrasse Tyson.

View more upcoming shows