Press Release

For Immediate Release	Contact: Caryl Lucas
Tuesday, March 21, 2006	Phone: 609-292-4302

RECORD CROWDS JOINED SECRETARY OF STATE NINA MITCHELL WELLS
AT THE REOPENING OF THE NEW JERSEY STATE MUSEUM PLANETARIUM

Trenton, NJ - When the New Jersey State Museum Planetarium reopened its doors on Saturday, March 18th, Secretary of State Nina Mitchell Wells was on hand to welcome visitors, young and old, to one of the state’s best kept secrets.

“The planetarium is one of our most exciting resources,” said Secretary Wells. “It is an exceptional tool that energizes our children about science and provides them with a positive outlet. When you walk inside, the planetarium transforms you,” she added.

Wells said she is encouraging residents of all ages to visit the New Jersey State Museum Planetarium to take advantage of its great educational programs and activities.

During the free event, more than 2,300 youngsters and their parents visited the Planetarium, while 984 visitors received a sneak preview of two new sky and laser shows: the Laser Space Chase 3D, a three dimensional laser show, and Hubble Vision, the best images from the Hubble Vision Telescope.

“The two shows use education and engaging ways to teach our youngsters about the elements of astronomy,” said Helen Shannon, Executive Director of the New Jersey State Museum Planetarium. “The Hubble Vision will show them exciting images from the Hubble Space Telescope,” she added.

“This is a cool place,” said Anthony Knox, a 10-year-old youngster from Beverly, New Jersey. “I learned a lot about the different planets like Mercury, Venus and Mars,” he added.

For nine-year-old Nicholas Kobol, the Hubble Vision was a “neat” experience. “The music sounded so good,” he said. “It was interesting, too,” added the youngster from Yardley, Pennsylvania.

Patrick Kobol, who brought Nicholas and his sister, Kaitlyn, 6, and twin brother, Christopher, 9, to the Planetarium, said his children were enthralled. “There were excited because they have been studying the planets in school. They loved the 3D special effects,” he said.

According to Jay Schwartz, Assistant Curator Planetarium Services, the Laser Space Chase 3D “teaches youngsters about our solar system, the speed of lightning and black holes. This is not your typical planetarium show,” he added. The Amateur Astronomers of Princeton (AAP) also showed visitors how to maneuver telescopes during their demonstrations throughout the day. Schwartz said the Planetarium distributed 1,200 free passes to visitors throughout the day. “The turnout was tremendous and we’re expected to see a lot of new faces back,” he added.

Starting April 1st, the New Jersey Museum Planetarium will unveil the exhibition “Heavens Above: Photographs of the Universe from the Hubble Telescope” at the Galleries at 225 West State Street. Organized by the Space Telescope Science Institute and the Midland Center for the Arts of Midland, Michigan, this new traveling exhibition features breathtaking images of the universe presented as large-formatted captioned transparencies mounted in light boxes. Also included in the exhibition is a plasma display panel featuring ViewSpace, continuously running presentations of Hubble images and animations with interpretive text set to evocative music.

In addition, the New Jersey Museum Planetarium will host its 26th annual “Super Science Festival” on the grounds of the state facility on Saturday, April 29th from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sunday, April 30, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., rain or shine. Sponsored, in part, by the Friends of the New Jersey State Museum and the Trenton Thunder, this year’s event will be filled with activities for participants of all ages. General admission is free, with low-cost and free programs.

Over 30 science exhibitors will present fun and educational hands-on activities. In addition, Mad Science of West New Jersey will present “Fire and Ice,” where they will use simple but exciting science experiments and demonstrations to involve audiences in the discovery process of science. Inside the venue, visitors will be treated to a brilliant laser light show, Laser Space Chase-3D and an astronomy star program, Hubble Vision, which uses images from the Hubble Telescope.

The New Jersey State Museum, located at 205 West State Street, is a division of the Department of State. The Galleries at 225 West State Street are open Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday, 9 am to 4 pm and are closed Sundays and State holidays. Admission is free. Metered parking is available on West State Street. On weekends, free parking is available in parking lots adjacent to and behind the Museum.

For more information on the New Jersey State Museum Planetarium, directions, hours, and parking details, call (609) 292-6464 or visit our website at www.newjerseystatemuseum.org.