Welcome to one of the largest, most technologically advanced planetariums in the United States. In 1997, the Planetarium opened its doors and over two million guests have visited. Arizona Science Center's Dorrance Planetarium features a NanoSeam design. The dome is the world's first of its kind at a science center or museum.
Shows subject to change without notice.
When should you visit? Weekdays after 1 p.m. are typically quieter, as we proudly host field trips many weekday mornings.
Generously supported by Dorrance Family Foundation and Richard F. Caris Charitable Trust.
Lasers and Liquor Shows - Bigger...Brighter...Bolder!
Experience our NEW state-of-the-art laser system with 14 mind-blowing special effects at our Lasers & Liquor nights! Sit back, look up and rock out! NEW this year, listen to music from Queen, Beyoncé, Beastie Boys and AC/DC while being dazzled by the multicolored laser light show on the Dorrance Planetarium dome.
The Dorrance Planetarium in Phoenix, Arizona is the second planetarium in the world to have this laser system which has the largest variety of laser special effects.
For more details and tickets, click here.
What's Playing?
Click on any of the date tabs below to see what's playing that day.
Mayan Archaeoastronomy: Observers of the Universe
- 10:30 AM
- 2:30 PM
A unique planetarium show intertwining science and mythology, transporting the viewer on a poetic journey describing the way Mayans viewed and understood the Universe.
The feast of colours and sounds makes for an artistic interpretation of the Universe that will not easily be forgotten. Stunning 360° visuals create the impression of being inside a beautiful stylised painting.
The film includes a tour of six Mayan temples: San Gervasio, Chichen Itzá, Uxmal, Edzná, Palenque and Bonampak. The importance of the orientation of the temples in relation to the movements of the Sun, Moon and Venus is vividly depicted.
Tickets available at the door.
Grand Tour of the Solar System
- 11:30 AM
- 1:30 PM
From Mars to Pluto, Dorrance Planetarium's Grand Tour of the Solar System takes you on a voyage through our spectacular solar system. In this cosmic presentation, you will visit each planet, explore, and compare their features. Discover what's out there in this unique and immersive experience under the dome with us today!
Solar Superstorms
- 12:30 PM
- 3:30 PM
Solar Superstorms takes viewers into the tangle of magnetic fields and superhot plasma that vent the Sun's rage in dramatic flares, violent solar tornadoes, and the largest eruptions in the solar system: Coronal Mass Ejections.
Fright Light Laser Show
- 4:00 PM
Sit back, look up and have a frightfully good time while being dazzled by the multicolored laser light show on the Dorrance Planetarium dome. Listen to "Thriller", a Monster Mash Medley, and experience the "Attack of the Radioactive Hamsters', and that's only the beginning. Features music from Black Sabbath, Alice Cooper, Will Smith, Pink Floyd, and Charlie Daniels Band.
The show begins at 4:15 p.m. (45 minutes in length)
(Note: These shows contain lyrics to popular songs and may not be suitable for all ages.)
Songlist
Thriller, Michael Jackson | Godzilla, Blue Oyster Cult | Monster Medley – Monster Mash, Boris Pickett; Purple People Eater, Warren Zevon; Boris the Spider, the Who | Enter Sandman, Metallica | Men In Black, Will Smith | Attack of the Radioactive Hamsters, Weird Al Yankovic | Firestarter, Prodigy | Dead Man’s Party, Oingo Boingo | Iron Man, Black Sabbath | Another Brick in the Wall, Pink Floyd | Push It, Garbage | Frankenstein, Edgar Winters Group | Devil Went Down to Georgia, Charlie Daniels Band | Feed My Frankenstein, Alice Cooper
Mayan Archaeoastronomy: Observers of the Universe
- 3:00 PM
A unique planetarium show intertwining science and mythology, transporting the viewer on a poetic journey describing the way Mayans viewed and understood the Universe.
The feast of colours and sounds makes for an artistic interpretation of the Universe that will not easily be forgotten. Stunning 360° visuals create the impression of being inside a beautiful stylised painting.
The film includes a tour of six Mayan temples: San Gervasio, Chichen Itzá, Uxmal, Edzná, Palenque and Bonampak. The importance of the orientation of the temples in relation to the movements of the Sun, Moon and Venus is vividly depicted.
Tickets available at the door.
Grand Tour of the Solar System
- 11:30 AM
- 1:30 PM
From Mars to Pluto, Dorrance Planetarium's Grand Tour of the Solar System takes you on a voyage through our spectacular solar system. In this cosmic presentation, you will visit each planet, explore, and compare their features. Discover what's out there in this unique and immersive experience under the dome with us today!
Solar Superstorms
- 12:30 PM
- 3:30 PM
Solar Superstorms takes viewers into the tangle of magnetic fields and superhot plasma that vent the Sun's rage in dramatic flares, violent solar tornadoes, and the largest eruptions in the solar system: Coronal Mass Ejections.
Fright Light Laser Show
- 4:00 PM
Sit back, look up and have a frightfully good time while being dazzled by the multicolored laser light show on the Dorrance Planetarium dome. Listen to "Thriller", a Monster Mash Medley, and experience the "Attack of the Radioactive Hamsters', and that's only the beginning. Features music from Black Sabbath, Alice Cooper, Will Smith, Pink Floyd, and Charlie Daniels Band.
The show begins at 4:15 p.m. (45 minutes in length)
(Note: These shows contain lyrics to popular songs and may not be suitable for all ages.)
Songlist
Thriller, Michael Jackson | Godzilla, Blue Oyster Cult | Monster Medley – Monster Mash, Boris Pickett; Purple People Eater, Warren Zevon; Boris the Spider, the Who | Enter Sandman, Metallica | Men In Black, Will Smith | Attack of the Radioactive Hamsters, Weird Al Yankovic | Firestarter, Prodigy | Dead Man’s Party, Oingo Boingo | Iron Man, Black Sabbath | Another Brick in the Wall, Pink Floyd | Push It, Garbage | Frankenstein, Edgar Winters Group | Devil Went Down to Georgia, Charlie Daniels Band | Feed My Frankenstein, Alice Cooper
Mayan Archaeoastronomy: Observers of the Universe
- 10:30 AM
- 2:30 PM
A unique planetarium show intertwining science and mythology, transporting the viewer on a poetic journey describing the way Mayans viewed and understood the Universe.
The feast of colours and sounds makes for an artistic interpretation of the Universe that will not easily be forgotten. Stunning 360° visuals create the impression of being inside a beautiful stylised painting.
The film includes a tour of six Mayan temples: San Gervasio, Chichen Itzá, Uxmal, Edzná, Palenque and Bonampak. The importance of the orientation of the temples in relation to the movements of the Sun, Moon and Venus is vividly depicted.
Tickets available at the door.
Grand Tour of the Solar System
- 11:30 AM
- 1:30 PM
From Mars to Pluto, Dorrance Planetarium's Grand Tour of the Solar System takes you on a voyage through our spectacular solar system. In this cosmic presentation, you will visit each planet, explore, and compare their features. Discover what's out there in this unique and immersive experience under the dome with us today!
Solar Superstorms
- 12:30 PM
- 3:30 PM
Solar Superstorms takes viewers into the tangle of magnetic fields and superhot plasma that vent the Sun's rage in dramatic flares, violent solar tornadoes, and the largest eruptions in the solar system: Coronal Mass Ejections.
Fright Light Laser Show
- 4:00 PM
Sit back, look up and have a frightfully good time while being dazzled by the multicolored laser light show on the Dorrance Planetarium dome. Listen to "Thriller", a Monster Mash Medley, and experience the "Attack of the Radioactive Hamsters', and that's only the beginning. Features music from Black Sabbath, Alice Cooper, Will Smith, Pink Floyd, and Charlie Daniels Band.
The show begins at 4:15 p.m. (45 minutes in length)
(Note: These shows contain lyrics to popular songs and may not be suitable for all ages.)
Songlist
Thriller, Michael Jackson | Godzilla, Blue Oyster Cult | Monster Medley – Monster Mash, Boris Pickett; Purple People Eater, Warren Zevon; Boris the Spider, the Who | Enter Sandman, Metallica | Men In Black, Will Smith | Attack of the Radioactive Hamsters, Weird Al Yankovic | Firestarter, Prodigy | Dead Man’s Party, Oingo Boingo | Iron Man, Black Sabbath | Another Brick in the Wall, Pink Floyd | Push It, Garbage | Frankenstein, Edgar Winters Group | Devil Went Down to Georgia, Charlie Daniels Band | Feed My Frankenstein, Alice Cooper
Mayan Archaeoastronomy: Observers of the Universe
- 10:30 AM
- 2:30 PM
A unique planetarium show intertwining science and mythology, transporting the viewer on a poetic journey describing the way Mayans viewed and understood the Universe.
The feast of colours and sounds makes for an artistic interpretation of the Universe that will not easily be forgotten. Stunning 360° visuals create the impression of being inside a beautiful stylised painting.
The film includes a tour of six Mayan temples: San Gervasio, Chichen Itzá, Uxmal, Edzná, Palenque and Bonampak. The importance of the orientation of the temples in relation to the movements of the Sun, Moon and Venus is vividly depicted.
Tickets available at the door.
Grand Tour of the Solar System
- 11:30 AM
- 1:30 PM
From Mars to Pluto, Dorrance Planetarium's Grand Tour of the Solar System takes you on a voyage through our spectacular solar system. In this cosmic presentation, you will visit each planet, explore, and compare their features. Discover what's out there in this unique and immersive experience under the dome with us today!
Solar Superstorms
- 12:30 PM
- 3:30 PM
Solar Superstorms takes viewers into the tangle of magnetic fields and superhot plasma that vent the Sun's rage in dramatic flares, violent solar tornadoes, and the largest eruptions in the solar system: Coronal Mass Ejections.
Fright Light Laser Show
- 4:00 PM
Sit back, look up and have a frightfully good time while being dazzled by the multicolored laser light show on the Dorrance Planetarium dome. Listen to "Thriller", a Monster Mash Medley, and experience the "Attack of the Radioactive Hamsters', and that's only the beginning. Features music from Black Sabbath, Alice Cooper, Will Smith, Pink Floyd, and Charlie Daniels Band.
The show begins at 4:15 p.m. (45 minutes in length)
(Note: These shows contain lyrics to popular songs and may not be suitable for all ages.)
Songlist
Thriller, Michael Jackson | Godzilla, Blue Oyster Cult | Monster Medley – Monster Mash, Boris Pickett; Purple People Eater, Warren Zevon; Boris the Spider, the Who | Enter Sandman, Metallica | Men In Black, Will Smith | Attack of the Radioactive Hamsters, Weird Al Yankovic | Firestarter, Prodigy | Dead Man’s Party, Oingo Boingo | Iron Man, Black Sabbath | Another Brick in the Wall, Pink Floyd | Push It, Garbage | Frankenstein, Edgar Winters Group | Devil Went Down to Georgia, Charlie Daniels Band | Feed My Frankenstein, Alice Cooper
Check out all of our things to do in Phoenix, AZ today, we can't wait to see you at Arizona Science Center!
