Salisbury University students can now add out-of-this-world education to their hands-on experiential learning thanks to a new planetarium recently dedicated at Henson Science Hall.
“There is a tremendous amount of youthful energy from students coming out of high school wanting to study astronomy and astrophysics, bolstered by not just government-based explorations like NASA’s Hubble and James Webb space telescopes, which are changing the entire way we think about our universe, but also in terms of private companies like SpaceX and Boeing,” said Dr. Michael Scott, dean of SU’s Richard A. Henson School of Science and Technology and interim dean of SU’s College of Health and Human Services.
The SU Physics Department plans to offer planetarium events open to the public and host external groups beginning next year.
“We are entering an entire new realm of space exploration over the next 30 to 40 years. The incoming SU students who study astronomy and astrophysics in this planetarium will be the scientists of the future who push us on to colonizing the moon and Mars. These students will be doing that work in the future. Without facilities like this, it would be difficult for them to advance to that next step, and here at SU, we are providing those opportunities.”
The Henson Planetarium will enhance and support science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education, with primary use by SU’s Physics Department for classroom instruction and research for astronomy and astrophysics students.
The new facility, combined with SU’s proximity to and recent Space Act Agreement with NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility, also opens doors for more hands-on learning opportunities and partnerships for students seeking careers in space exploration.
The planetarium was made possible by a $200,000 gift from the Richard A. Henson Foundation. The SU Physics Department plans to offer planetarium events open to the public and host external groups beginning next year.
