Dr. Lee Carkner presents “Season of Light" at Augustana College -- December 6 through 12.
Saturday, December 6, through Friday, December 12
Augustana College's John Deere Planetarium, 820 38th Street, Rock Island IL
An avidly anticipated holiday tradition returns to Augustana College from December 6 through 12 when the John Deere Planetarium hosts the week-long presentation Season of Light, a fascinating and beautiful holiday presentation hosted by the college's planetarium director and professor of physics Dr. Lee Carkner.
Created by Loch Ness Productions, Season of Light uses images, video, animation, and sound to tell the story of how holiday traditions are connected to the sky above. Season of Light also explains the seasons and the winter constellations and speculates about the Star of Bethlehem. Meanwhile, astronomy images and artifacts from the Apollo program and a quarter-ton piece of the Canyon Diablo meteorite will be on display at the Getz-Rogers Gallery, located in the John Deere Planetarium lobby
In addition, Augustana’s Fryxell Geology Museum, adjacent to the planetarium, will be open for visitors, with its hours of operation 1 to 4 p.m. on the weekend of December 6 and 7, and from 7:30 to 8:30 p.m. on the weeknights of December 8 through 12.
Program presenter Dr. Lee Carkner received his B.S. in Physics from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in 1992 and completed his PhD in Astrophysics at Pennsylvania State University in 1998. His thesis explored the topic of X-ray emission from very young, sun-like stars. Dr. Carkner joined the faculty at Augustana in 1999 and is currently Professor of Physics and director of the John Deere Planetarium, where he gives planetarium shows to thousands of public school students and members of the general public each year.
Season of Light will be presented in the John Deere Planetarium December 6 through 12, with the show taking place Monday through Friday at 7 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday at 2 p.m. Admission is free, but reservations are required, and the program is not recommended for children ages seven and under. Doors will open 15 minutes before each presentations, late-comers will not be admitted, and more information is available by calling (309)794-7318 and visiting Augustana.edu.
