Astronomy Nights" are held on the first and third Thursday of each month that the university is in session. Astronomy Night activities are appropriate for ages 10 and up. The program begins with an indoor public planetarium show at the John R. Kirk Planetarium. Tickets are REQUIRED for the planetarium show. There is a suggested ticket price of $5 per seat (you can enter any payment amount of your choice). A second show will be offered if the first show reaches capacity. After the planetarium show, Smolen Observatory will be open for telescope viewing only if the sky is clear (tickets are not required at the Observatory). Call the Observatory at 845-257-1110 to hear a message indicating if the public viewing has been canceled due to cloudy weather/staff availability. Visitors can participate in either the planetarium show, observatory telescope viewing, or both.
Astronomy Night telescope viewing begins shortly after sunset and therefore the start time changes according to the seasons.
Admission: Tickets for Astronomy Night Planetarium shows become available one week prior to each show (on Thursday at 12:00 PM).
Parking: All visitors who park on the SUNY New Paltz campus must display a valid Visitor/Day Parking Permit on the vehicle's dashboard or hanging from the rear view mirror, Monday - Friday between 6:30 a.m. - 6:30 p.m. Park & Pay machines are located in the entrance of the Rt. 32 Lot, West entrance located on Hawk drive, off Rt. 208 and Elting Lot adjacent to Parker Theater. A Visitor/Day Permit is valid for the date of purchase only.
Weather: Smolen Observatory will be open for telescope viewing only if the sky is clear. Call the Observatory at 845-257-1110 to hear a message indicating if the public viewing has been canceled due to cloudy weather/staff availability.
For more information and directions see our websites at http://www.newpaltz.edu/planetarium/ and http://www.newpaltz.edu/observatory/
