The holiday season has arrived at the Tyler Junior College Center for Earth and Space Science featuring Hudnall Planetarium.
During Thanksgiving Week, center hours are 9:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Tuesdays-Fridays and 10:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Saturdays.
From Nov. 30 through Dec. 18, center hours are noon-4:30 p.m. Tuesdays-Fridays and 10:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Saturdays. Private reservations are available 9:30-11:30 a.m. Tuesdays-Fridays.
During the holiday break, Dec. 20-30, the center will be open 9:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Mondays-Thursdays.
The center will only be closed on Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 25; Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, Dec. 24 and 25; and New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day, Dec. 31 and Jan. 1.
Dome shows with a holiday or winter theme will be presented through Dec. 30, including:
• “Mountain Adventure: Out of Bounds” (1 p.m.) — Follow Olympian Torah Bright as she journeys through the world’s longest chain of mountain ranges extending from Antarctica all the way to Alaska. Along the way, Torah will ride with backcountry legend Jeremy Jones and free-skiing superstar Sammy Carlson. Together, they will encounter penguins, polar bears and other wildlife, and meet with scientists and environmentalists to uncover a deeper understanding of our mountain ecosystems.
• “Mystery of the Christmas Star” (2 p.m.) — Journey back more than 2000 years to Bethlehem for scientific explanation for the star the wise men followed to find the baby Jesus.
• “Extreme Auroras” (3 p.m.) — Created by award-winning photographer Ole Salomonsen, “Extreme Auroras” is a visual feast. Join Salomonsen as he travels through northern Norway, Finland and Sweden in pursuit of his passion to film nature’s wildest and most spectacular light show: the aurora borealis, or northern lights. Filmed with fisheye lenses that capture the whole sky and then projected in the full-dome theater, you will feel as if you are immersed in the arctic wilderness, witnessing this awe-inspiring natural phenomenon.
• “Season of Light” (4 p.m.) — This show recounts the historical religious and cultural rituals practiced during the time of winter solstice – not only Christian and Jewish, but also Celtic, Nordic, Roman, Irish, Mexican and Hopi. It also looks at a few of the more light-hearted seasonal traditions: from gift giving and kissing under the mistletoe to the custom of decking the halls with greenery and candles. Saint Nicholas, Sinterklaas, Kris Kringle, Father Christmas, and Santa Claus all drop by as well.
Admission is $7 for adults, $5 for children, students and seniors (ages 65 and over).
The science center is located at 1411 E. Lake St., on the TJC main campus. Parking is free.
To purchase advance tickets, go to sciencecenter.tjc.edu.