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The South Downs Planetarium is a registered educational charity, which is run by a dedicated team of volunteers and astronomy enthusiasts. It operates throughout the year, but is not open every day and for that reason is not open to casual visitors. However, the Planetarium is available for private bookings on any day of the week, and we can arrange special shows for private groups, clubs and societies daytime, evenings or at weekends. We usually have eight or nine presentations every month which are open to the general public, but the dates and times vary so please see either our leaflets, call our information line, (see below), or view the events page for more details. To book an event please call our ticket hotline on: 07818 297292 For dates and times of public shows, please call us on: 01243 774400 In addition to the public shows, we accept advance bookings for visits by schools and youth groups, clubs, societies and adult groups, and for private or corporate hire as required. At last, after years of planning, fund-raising and hard work, the South Downs Planetarium is a reality. It will be one of the largest planetaria in the British Isles, and will be a properly scientific planetarium, not a peep-show. All the same, I have come across one or two people who say "Why create an artificial sky when the real one is there for our inspection?" A planetarium is fun, and at the South Downs we intend to combine both these functions in a way seldom carried out elsewhere. The success of our first Open Days showed that this can be done - and we have in John Mason, a presenter who is second to none. (I have done a great deal of planetarium lecturing myself and was the first Director at Armagh, but I am nowhere near John's standard, and I know it). |