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Dome shows Friday to Sunday. Next dark-sky night Saturday 7 November (sample)

(555) 018-2200

[email protected]

Planetarium shows and dark-sky nights in Springfield

A 60-seat dome on Hollow Hill and an astronomy club that takes its telescopes out to a dark field every month. Come to a show, then come out to look for yourself (sample).

Book a show
This month's club nights

Next dome show Friday 19:00, Tonight’s sky, live. Next dark-sky night Saturday 7 November (sample).

November 2026 (sample)

Sun

Mon

Tue

Wed

Thu

Fri

Sat

Sun 1, last quarter

Mon 2, last quarter

Tue 3, last quarter

Wed 4, waning crescent

Thu 5, waning crescent, Club talk

Fri 6, waning crescent

Sat 7, waning crescent, Dark-sky night

Sun 8, new moon

Mon 9, new moon

Tue 10, new moon

Wed 11, waxing crescent

Thu 12, waxing crescent

Fri 13, waxing crescent, Dark-sky night

Sat 14, waxing crescent

Sun 15, first quarter

Mon 16, first quarter

Tue 17, first quarter, Moon night

Wed 18, first quarter

Thu 19, waxing gibbous

Fri 20, waxing gibbous

Sat 21, waxing gibbous

Sun 22, full moon

Mon 23, full moon

Tue 24, full moon

Wed 25, full moon

Thu 26, waning gibbous

Fri 27, waning gibbous, Planet night

Sat 28, waning gibbous

Sun 29, waning gibbous

Mon 30, last quarter

Ringed nights are club nights (sample): dark-sky nights on Sat 7 and Fri 13 at Cutler Ridge, the moon night on Tue 17 and a planet night on Fri 27 on the roof terrace, the club talk on Thu 5 in the dome. Dome shows run every Friday to Sunday, cloud or clear.

Under the dome this week

The dome is a 12-metre screen over 60 reclining seats. Every show is presented live: the presenter turns the sky to tonight and takes questions at the end.

Rows of empty theatre seats in deep blue light

19:00

Friday

Tonight’s sky, live

What you can see from your garden this week

45 min

All ages

20:30

Friday

Saturn and its rings

Why the rings look thin this year

40 min

Ages 8+

11:00

Saturday

The Moon up close

Craters, seas and the six landing sites

40 min

Ages 6+

14:00

Saturday

Birth of a star

From a dark cloud to a star like the Sun

35 min

Ages 8+

19:00

Saturday

Tonight’s sky, live

What you can see from your garden this week

45 min

All ages

11:00

Sunday

First stars

A gentle show with stories of the constellations

30 min

Ages 4-7

15:00

Sunday

Saturn and its rings

Why the rings look thin this year

40 min

Ages 8+

Show times (sample). The ringed time is the next show. Doors open 15 minutes before; latecomers wait for a break.

Three kinds of club night, set by the Moon

Moonlight washes out faint galaxies but shows craters at their best, so the Moon decides which night is which. Each kind of night is drawn with the Moon that sets it.

The Moon at new moon

Dark-sky night

The weekend nights nearest new moon, when the sky is darkest: galaxies, nebulae and the Milky Way through the big telescopes at the field.

Where

Cutler Ridge field, 22 km north

When

From 30 minutes after sunset

Who

Members and their guests

The Moon at first quarter

Moon night

At first quarter the Moon is up in the evening and the craters stand out along the shadow line. Telescopes on the roof terrace, open to everyone.

Where

Roof terrace of the planetarium

When

19:00-21:30

Who

Everyone, free

The Moon at full moon

Planet night

Planets are bright enough to see in moonlight and from town, so planet nights can fall on any phase. This season: Saturn, then Jupiter.

Where

Roof terrace of the planetarium

When

When a planet is well up after dark

Who

Everyone, free

If it is cloudy at 17:00 on the day, the night moves to the next date on the calendar (sample). Check the top of this page or call the desk.

What you can see through the telescopes

The objects we point at most on club nights, with the months they are best placed in the evening and how bright they are.

Object

What you see in the club telescopes

Best

Mag.

Saturn

The rings, nearly edge-on this year, and its largest moon, Titan

Sep-Jan

0.7

The Moon

Craters and mountains along the shadow line, best at first quarter

Every month

−9.9

M31, Andromeda Galaxy

A long grey glow: the light left it 2.5 million years ago

Sep-Jan

3.4

M45, the Pleiades

A tight group of blue-white stars, best in binoculars

Oct-Mar

1.6

M42, Orion Nebula

Glowing gas around the four young stars of the Trapezium

Dec-Mar

4.0

Albireo

A double star, one gold and one blue, in the Swan

Jun-Oct

3.1

Jupiter

Cloud belts and four moons that move from night to night

Dec-Apr

−2.5

Magnitude: the smaller the number, the brighter it is. From town the faintest stars you can see are about 4; from Cutler Ridge about 6.5 (sample).

A few people with a telescope under the Milky Way on open ground at night

The dark-sky field at Cutler Ridge

A fenced meadow on a ridge north of town, far from street lights, with concrete pads for the club telescopes and a warm hut for coffee between looks.

Distance

About 25 minutes by car from the planetarium

22 km

Sky darkness

Rural sky: the Milky Way casts faint shadows

Bortle 3

Telescopes on site

From a 6-inch refractor to a 16-inch reflector

4

Parking

Park facing away from the field, lights off

15 cars

Field facts (sample).

Join the club

Members use the field, borrow telescopes and get help from people who have been at it for years. Beginners are the reason the club exists.

Adult

A year, all club nights and the monthly talk

$40

Family

Two adults and their children under 16

$65

Student

With a student card

$20

Under 16

With a member adult

Free

Dome show ticket

Members $6, under 16 $6

$9

Example prices.

Join the club
About the club
A hand holding open a star atlas with constellations drawn on dark blue pages

What members get

  • A key code for the Cutler Ridge field
  • Telescope loans for a month at a time
  • The monthly talk in the dome, first Thursday
  • A red torch and a printed sky chart when you join

Your first club night

The questions people ask on the phone before they come out for the first time.

Do I need my own telescope?

No. The club brings its telescopes and a member stays at each one. If you have binoculars, bring them: they show more than most people expect.

What if it is cloudy?

We decide at 17:00 on the day and post it at the top of the website. A cancelled night moves to the next date on the calendar. Dome shows run whatever the weather.

How cold does it get?

Colder than you think, because you stand still for hours. Wear a hat, gloves and one more layer than feels sensible. The hut at the field is heated.

Why only red torches?

Your eyes take about 20 minutes to get used to the dark, and one white light undoes it. Red light does not. We lend red torches at the gate.

Can children come?

Yes, with an adult. Moon nights on the roof terrace are best for children: short waits, a bright target and home by bedtime.

From the sky notes

All sky notes

Find the planetarium

Hollow Hill Planetarium
40 Observatory Lane, Springfield (sample)

Dome shows

Friday from 19:00, weekends from 11:00

Fri-Sun

Front desk

12:00-21:00, tickets and telescope loans

Wed-Sun

School mornings

Booked classes only, from 09:30

Tue-Thu

Roof terrace

Moon and planet nights, 19:00-21:30

Club nights

Opening times (sample).

  • Bus 12 stops at Observatory Lane, three minutes' walk
  • Free parking behind the dome after 17:00
  • Step-free entrance; four wheelchair spaces in the dome
Get directions
Map of the streets around Hollow Hill Planetarium on the hill
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Dome shows Friday to Sunday. Next dark-sky night Saturday 7 November (sample)

(555) 018-2200

[email protected]

Book a show