Exterior view of the Frederick Phineas & Sandra Priest Rose Center for Earth and Space and Hayden Planetarium at the American Museum of Natural History. © AMNH/D. Finnin
The American Museum of Natural History’s Hayden Planetarium Space Theater officially reopened to the public on Wednesday, March 24. This comes as NYC movie theaters have officially been allowed to reopen at a limited capacity this month.
While the museum reopened in September 2020, the theater has been closed since March 2020. A press release from the AMNH states that the planetarium will follow health and safety protocols including cleaning between showtimes and timed-entry tickets. While the Hayden Planetarium ordinarily seats up to 429 visitors, capacity will be limited to 48 people.
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“We are thrilled to reopen the doors of the Hayden Planetarium Space Theater, a world-class facility with a long and storied history of bringing our visitors to the outer limits of space and the universe,” said Museum President Ellen V. Futter. “As New York City continues to extend its reopening and recovery, we are proud for this iconic theater to once again offer experiences that are transporting, enriching, and grounded in authentic science.”
View of the Hayden Planetarium sphere at the American Museum of Natural History, from inside the Frederick Phineas & Sandra Priest Rose Center for Earth and Space © AMNH/D. Finnin.
“I’m an astrophysicist today because of a first encounter I had with the Hayden Planetarium when I was a child,” said Neil deGrasse Tyson, the Frederick P. Rose Director of the Hayden Planetarium.
Currently on the screen is World’s Beyond Earth, which “takes viewers on an exhilarating expedition through the solar system, from our own blue planet to far beyond the habitable zone.”
Tickets will be on sale until April 30. To learn more and reserve a seat, click here.
