Visiting the Mallorca Planetary opens a window to the universe in the interior of the island for users. Amado Carbonell Santos is the president of the Institute of Astronomy and Astronautics of Mallorca and a volunteer at Mallorca Planetary, in Costitx. “Visits to the Planetarium surprise visitors a lot; most say “wow, how wonderful!” It looks like a round movie theater and people hallucinate when the session starts, especially if it is live”, explains Carbonell.

With this presentation, you really want to get closer to this astronomical observatory and be able to touch the sky with your eyes. Visits to Mallorca Planetary begin with a live projection, “or with a special documentary recorded in a timely manner, inside the Planetarium room”, says Carbonell. Afterwards, a talk takes place in the agora or inside the meteorite room, depending on the weather. Finally, if there is good visibility, the visit ends with the observation of the sky through the telescopes.

visitas al planetario de Mallorca

A group during the visit. Photo: Mallorca Planetary.

According to Amado Carbonell, “many people come with a profile of scientific tourist. They have knowledge of basic and amateur astronomy, and they visit the Mallorca Planetary to expand it or directly get started in the astronomy area”. As an anecdote, the scientist assures that they have had cases of people “looking for something very, very specific. A boy came from England a year ago and he just wanted to know how a rocket works. We did the explanation and we really enjoyed that visit. They are very specific things ”.

Many families with children also visit the Mallorca Planetary. Amado Carbonell recommends that “they are at least 6-7 years old, because that is how they begin to understand what is explained and really enjoy it. If they are smaller, they like it, but they do not fully understand the explanations”.

Upcoming events at the Planetarium of Mallorca

After the Perseid shower, a couple of meteor showers are expected this winter, especially the Orionids. However, from the Costitx Planetarium they are watching how the health situation evolves, which directly affects group visits. The observatory has the appropriate security measures, “so that people feel that they can keep sufficient distance from other visitors”, in addition to the mandatory use of masks, gel, disinfection of telescopes, etc.

The schedules of the visits to the Planetarium of Mallorca can be consulted on its own website.

planetario de mallorca, costitxMallorca Planetary, in Costitx.