Welcome to the William Brish Planetarium

​​Upcoming Public Programs

​Tuesday, October 22, 2019

5:30 - 6:15 p.m.
Moles: What is out There?

MOLES’ story revolves around a young mole named Plato. Plato lives deep underground in a dark burrow full of mystery and surprises together with his mum and dad. He is a restless, curious and thoughtful creature. Plato is fascinated by the light that penetrates the entrance to his home. Sometimes it is lit; sometimes it is off… Why could that be? Our young friend is desperate to see what is out there in the outside world and one day he finally gets to see it all! Plato discovers day and night, the sun and the moon, and the stars! Plato’s best friends are Alfa, Beta and Gamma with whom he loves to sing… and go treasure hunting! Good thing that the professor Socrates keeps an eye on our young friends… as sometimes things can get a little out of hand…! The story has been inspired by the Greek philosopher Plato’s “Myth of the Cave”.

7:00 - 8:00 p.m.
​Solar Super Storms

A fury is building on the surface of the Sun – high-velocity jets, a fiery tsunami wave that reaches 100,000 kilometers high, rising loops of electrified gas. What’s driving these strange phenomena? How will they affect planet Earth? Find the answers as we venture into the seething interior of our star.

SOLAR SUPERSTORMS is a major new production that 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.  The show features one of the most intensive efforts ever made to visualize the inner workings of the sun, including a series of groundbreaking scientific visualizations computed on the giant new supercomputing initiative, Blue Waters, based at the National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA), University of Illinois.  Brace yourself for the onslaught of the next… Solar Superstorm.

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William Brish Planetarium
820 Commonwealth Ave
Hagerstown, MD 21740
301-766-2898
kopcochr@wcps.k12.md.us

Hours of Operation: 
8:00 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. M-F (during the WCPS School year by Appointment Only)
Select public show evenings 5:30 & 7:00 start times
Select Dates during the summer
Contact Us to schedule a group visit

Apollo 11 Command Module

About Us

Operated by the Washington County Public Schools System, the William Brish Planetarium serves K-12 students throughout Washington County August - June.
Public Programs are also offered throughout the school year, usually on the second and fourth Tuesday of the month, unless otherwise noted.  Please see our Public Programs Schedule for more information.
Also available are private showings on a limited basis.  For more information on scheduling the use of the planetarium for your group please visit the Non-WCPS Groups Information page or contact us for more information.

We have Upgraded!
The William Brish Planetarium is now a fully digital planetarium!  All programs are now digital full-dome presentations that immerse you in astronomy, earth science, biology and more as never before utilizing the Spitz Sci-Dome XD-S full-dome digital system.  To learn more about our new system and what types of things you can expect to see during your visit, check out the Spitz Inc. website found at http://www.spitzinc.com/planetarium/scidome/

Where we're located:

The William Brish Planetarium is located at 820 Commonwealth Ave.  Hagerstown, MD 21740.