Planetarium and geology museum to host May 3 open house

Augustana College's John Deere Planetarium and Fryxell Geology Museum will be open to the public on Saturday, May 3, 2025, for the annual spring open house.

The planetarium and geology museum, located at 820 38th Street, Rock Island, will be open from 8:30 p.m. until 10 p.m., with indoor and outdoor programs in the planetarium, observatory and geology museum. There is no charge for admission.

This year's open house will feature views of Jupiter, Mars and the mountains and craters of the Earth's Moon from the planetarium's telescopes. Also on display will be a quarter-ton piece of the Canyon Diablo meteorite and a planetarium show with images and information on the wonders of the night sky.

The Fryxell Geology Museum, which features one of the best collections of minerals and fossils in the Midwest, will offer hands-on mineral and fossil activities. Highlights in the museum include a wall of glowing fluorescent rocks, a cast of a Tyrannosaurus rex skull, and a complete 22-foot long skeleton of Cryolophosaurus, a large crested carnivorous dinosaur discovered in Antarctica.

The observing areas are unheated, so guests are asked to dress appropriate to the weather. In the event of cloudy sky conditions, telescope views may not be possible, but the indoor programs will still be offered.