McAuliffe Planetarium Draws Eager Audience

An estimated 270 elementary schoolchildren took part Friday in the inauguration of the Christa McAuliffe Planetarium, built in memory of the Concord teacher who died aboard the space shuttle Challenger.

The students, most of whom were toddlers when the Challenger exploded on Jan. 28, 1986, packed the halls of the $2.6-million gleaming pyramid-shaped planetarium building, waiting in line for the star and space science show to begin.

“Stars, planets. You know, good stuff,” said Erin Boss, 7, from the Harold Martin School in Hopkinton, when asked what she expected to see in the planetarium.

The facility, with its sophisticated projection equipment and murals of heavenly objects built for young hands to touch, is considered by its staff as one of the finest in the country.

“They are out of this planet right now, really hyped out and excited,” said David Tilley, a first-grade teacher from Hopkinton. He said his 6- to 8-year-old students are eager to learn about space travel, the planets and the stars.

Once inside the 94-seat planetarium, the students sat back in plush blue seats and saw “Wonderful Sky,” a special program created by New York’s American Museum-Hayden Planetarium, featuring the “Sesame Street” puppets.

Director Clinton Hatchett said 12,000 students will pass through its doors during the next three months for a variety of space science and astronomy programs.

“We can extend Christa McAuliffe’s dream to improve education by giving students experiences they may never be able to have,” Hatchett said.

The planetarium’s computer-controlled video, slide and laser disc projections produce three dimensional images of swirling galaxies and constellations and simulate space travel beyond the galaxy.

“We have an almost unlimited ability to show what it might be like to experience other worlds, whether they be light years away or inside our own bodies,” Hatchett said.