Questions to ask before you book a mobile planetarium

How do students enter the dome?

Many older planetarium domes have an entry tube that students have to crawl through to enter. It’s dark, uncomfortable, scary for some students, and takes a long time… plus it’s ripe for students bumping into each other and creating conflict.

Our domes are all walk-in, meaning quick, easy entrances and exits and no crawling or tubes.

Is there a live presenter?

Some domes play a recorded show. Nobody can answer a question, slow down when a group is confused, or skip ahead when they’re not.

A live presenter guides every one of our sessions on the same software major planetariums use, so when a fourth grader asks what’s inside a black hole, someone answers.

Are the lessons matched to the grade?

A single show for the whole school is written for the middle, so the second graders are lost and the seventh graders are bored.

We have 20+ NGSS-aligned lessons from pre-K through high school, and each session gets the lesson written for that grade.

How many students per session?

The number matters less than who’s in the group. When sessions are big enough that grades get mixed, the lesson has to be aimed at the youngest ages.

We take up to 50 per session, which is often one grade at a time, and run up to 12 sessions a day. That’s up to 600 students, each in a session built for their grade.

How many sessions in a day?

Some companies only include one session in their rate, or a smaller number, with each additional session costing more (if they’re even able to do more than five or six).

Our full-day program includes up to twelve 30-minute sessions. If your bell schedule is tight, fitting all 12 sometimes means shortening sessions to 25 minutes, and we’re happy to do that.

What’s included in the price?

A seemingly low rate grows fast once travel, setup, fees and additional sessions get added on.

Our price includes everything: the presenter, the dome, setup, teardown and travel within 50 miles of Chicago. Beyond 50 miles, travel may be adjusted, but your initial quote is always an all-in price. We’re fully insured.

Do we need a deposit? Can we change the date?

School calendars move. Testing gets rescheduled, a snow day lands on the wrong week, and a deposit or a change fee means the school pays for it.

We don’t take a deposit, and there’s no charge to change your date, right up until the day before. Earlier notice means more dates to pick from. (One exception: if your school is far enough out that our presenter stays overnight, a late change may need to cover hotel or travel costs we’ve already paid.)

Where is the company based?

A planetarium that tours through the region comes when the route comes. If your date shifts, the next pass might be months out.

We’re based in Chicago. Our presenters, our domes and our office are all here, which is why we can hold a date without a deposit, move it on short notice, and come back next year without you waiting on a route.

Where do the films come from?

Our 360 degree films come from major science institutions, including the Adler Planetarium, the California Academy of Sciences and the European Space Agency.

What paperwork can you provide?

We can help with whatever paperwork your school or district requires. We’re an approved CPS vendor, we accept POs, and we provide a W-9 and certificate of insurance. There’s no charge to add your school or district as an additional insured.

Who sets up, and what does our school’s staff do?

We set everything up. We arrive about 30 minutes before the first session and are packed out about 30 minutes after the last. Your staff lines up students and supervises. That’s it.

What space does the dome require?

Usually a gym works great. Our standard dome needs 20 x 20 feet of floor space (25 x 25 is more comfortable) and a 12 foot ceiling. Lower ceiling? We have a lower-profile dome that works down to 10 feet, and a smaller 17 foot dome for ceilings as low as 8 feet (it seats 25 at a time). Tell us about your space up front so we bring the right dome and plan your schedule around it.