Dr. David McCuan is a Professor of Political Science at SSU.  His expertise is in American politics and International Relations.  Dr. McCuan has had many appearances in television, print, and social media including The New York Times, CNN, ABC news, NPR, (to name just a very few) and is a Guest Host and Political Analyst for the Bay Area’s KCBS radio.  We have a Presidential election coming up November 2024 and Dr. McCuan will be discussing everything elections and beyond!  Be informed!  Stimulate your Brain!

IMAX Coral Reef Adventure: Take a once in a lifetime journey across the South Pacific for a spectacular IMAX adventure. Joy, ecstasy, a spiritual high: these words describe the exhilaration of diving a pristine coral reef as ocean explorers Howard and Michele Hall bring their love of the ocean into action.

Black Holes: The formation of the early universe, star birth and death, the collision of giant galaxies, and a simulated flight to a super-massive black hole lurking at the center of our own Milky Way Galaxy.

Former Piner High School Graduate and now Assistant Professor at Texas A&M University in the School of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences will share her journey from a struggling student at Piner to now Assistant Professor at Texas A&M.  Lindsey now works on mammalian bone and tissue regeneration investigating the repair mechanisms following amputation of appendages.

Super Volcanoes: An immersive planetarium show that looks back at rare classes of eruptions that have marshaled the energy that lurks, like a sleeping dragon, beneath the surface of planet Earth.

From Firestorm to Climate Healing

The Secrets of Whales: Orcas across the globe use unique strategies to stay on top of the food chain. Witness five powerful orca matriarchs pass down their family hunting traditions to the next generation, preserving their way of life before the customs are lost forever.

Emmy winning Cinematographer Owen Bissell will join us for an evening of adventure as he discusses his work on numerous National Geographic, Disney, PBS, and other nature films across the globe.  Owen’s travels have taken him to the corners of the earth.  And no, the Earth is not flat.  If you love adventure, you cannot miss this!

Full Dome Double Feature in Spanish only

-Dynamic Earth: Dynamic Earth explores the inner workings of Earth’s great life support system: the global climate.

-Solar Superstorms: A fury is building on the surface of the Sun. 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.

Incoming!   Audiences will discover how asteroids and comets have collided with our planet throughout history, changing the course of life on Earth and shaping the world we know today.

SMART Train Chief Engineer Bill Gamlen will join us for an evening of everything SMART train. From its technology, design, engineering and especially SMART trains future plans.

Natural Selection  We will join Darwin on his voyage with the HMS Beagle to the Galapagos Islands where he was inspired to develop his later theory of transmutation by natural selection.  Darwin himself will explain the mechanism of natural selection to the audience and support it by showing many beautiful examples in nature.

The Great Redwood Trail is a 320-mile world-class, multi-use rail-to-trail project connecting California’s San Francisco and Humboldt Bays.  Established in 2021, about 75 miles of this trail have already been built.  Project Manager Louisa Morris will share information about this exciting legacy trail that travels through some of the wildest and most scenic landscapes right in our own back yard! 

We Are Stars: What are we made of? Where did it all come from? Explore the secrets of our cosmic chemistry and our explosive origins. Connect life on Earth to the evolution of the Universe by following the formation of Hydrogen atoms to the synthesis of Carbon, and the molecules for life.

Super Mentor and repeat STEM Café guest, Steve Smith, talks about the most energetic things in our universe, super and hyper novae! A supernova explosion can outshine an entire Galaxy of 200+ billion stars. Come learn about the event that made every atom in your body. That's right, you are made of star stuff from a supernova.

-Northland: Witness epic winters and spectacular summers, where timing is everything. End your school year with this beautiful North American tribute!

Dr. Targett is a Physics and Astronomy professor from SSU. Much of what we think we know about space comes from film and television, but Hollywood’s job is more often to entertain than to educate. In this presentation, Prof. Thomas Targett of Sonoma State University will sort fact from fiction, taking a tour through the worlds of Star Trek, Star Wars and much more! Last chance for STEM Level 1!

-Faster than Light: From atomic spaceships to the Alcubierre drive: explore the technology that may one day take us to the stars. Warp Drive please

Crypto currency has been in the news recently with the collapse of FTX. What exactly is Crypto currency? Tim Coulter will be demystifying this strange concept in currency. Tim will discuss how it works and what it can be used for. We will learn about the underlying technology that powers Crypto currency “the block-chain” and how it might impact more than just the world’s financial systems. Join us for Tales from the Crypt-o!

-Living Worlds: Whether earthly or alien, all life leaves a trace. Take a journey through space and time to discover how life makes Earth livable, where it could be found elsewhere in the cosmos, and what new technologies we might use to find it. Along the way, you’ll learn how light and color can help us spot other living worlds even from vast distances—and develop a new appreciation for the one-of-a-kind planet right beneath our feet.

There is a way out of the climate crisis through engaged citizenry that supports good science, environmental justice and good government! Leah and Paula, volunteers with The Climate Center, will engage participants in discussing how we can curb climate change in Sonoma County and statewide through Climate-Safe California, the Climate Center’s plan for sustainable future.

-The Secrets of Whales: Orcas across the globe use unique strategies to stay on top of the food chain. Patagonia's whales catch sea lions off the beach, New Zealand's orcas root out hidden stingrays, and Norway's sea giants master the tail slap. Witness five powerful orca matriarchs pass down their family hunting traditions to the next generation, preserving their way of life before the customs are lost forever.

-From Arctic Penguins, to Great Egrets (and much more!). Local Avian Research.
The ARC is a local Nature Education and Conservation Science group that include land preservation and stewardship. Scott Jennings will discuss bird counting to measure long-term changes in population sizes and how they use the data to study habitat and bird movements to find causes and solutions to population declines. He will also discuss how they combine research and stewardship to better manage healthy ecosystems. Join us for this fascinating look at local conservation efforts!

Full Dome Double Feature in Spanish!
-Habitat Earth: Explore today’s connected world of biology and human networks!
-We Are Stars: Explore the secrets of our Cosmic origins and the Universe!

Our apologies! The Planetarium show on December 1st, "Unseen Universe", has been canceled due to the SPARQ Planetarium control server 's motherboard needing to be replaced. However, we should be up and running for the December 15th special Spanish only presentation of “Habitat Earth” and “We Are Stars”.

Ever wonder where we get our electricity in Santa Rosa? The Advanced Energy Center and Sonoma Water will discuss our electrical energy system and how it’s connected to climate change. You will explore the energy efficiency of and LED bulb compared to an incandescent along with climate solutions that are being implemented by Sonoma Water and Sonoma Clean Power.

-The Deepest Cave (Extreme Screen) a team of elite cavers led by 68-year- old Bill Stone attempts a months-long expedition to officially make Cheve Cave in Oaxaca, Mexico the world’s deepest cave. A massive logistical undertaking above ground supports the lead team in the depths as they navigate an underground maze of twisting tunnels and dead ends in search of a passage that leads to the bottom of the deepest cave on earth.

The groundbreaking James Webb Space Telescope has already produced some of the most beautiful images ever seen. This talk will delve into the idea that the farther you look in distance, the farther back you look in time, and explain how the concepts of cosmological redshift and gravitational lensing help us to understand the origins of stars, galaxies, and everything that exists. We will explore how the technology of the JWST allows us to see farther back in time than ever before with such amazing clarity and detail. There is a new Telescope in town, and it is brining us mind bending images of the universe as never seen before!

-Edge of Darkness: The film features amazing scenes of places never before seen gathered by key space missions. It features a spectacular flight though the great cliffs on comet 67P, a close look at the fascinating bright "lights" on Ceres, and the first ever close ups of dwarf binary planet Pluto/Charon and its moons.

The ARC is a local Nature Education and Conservation Science group that include land preservation and stewardship. Kate and Liz are part of the Living with Lions project and will share their research on Mountain Lions. Living with Lions is a community conservation project in the Mayacamas Mountains of Sonoma and Napa Counties.