By Kate Kocienski
Grand Rapids Public Museum

The Grand Rapids Public Museum (GRPM) announced today that a Backyard Stargazing virtual meet-up from the GRPM’s Roger B. Chaffee Planetarium will be offered to GRPM members and the public on Thursday, July 23 at 4:30 p.m. 

Virtual visitors will journey the depths of the universe, alongside the GRPM’s planetarium experts to learn about the upcoming Perseid meteor shower, tips and tricks on how to spot planets and constellations in the night sky and more. 

“The planetarium is a large part of the GRPM experience,” said Kate Kocienski, the GRPM’s Vice President of Marketing and PR. “We are happy to offer affordable, educational programming during this time when we are unable to welcome visitors to the Chaffee Planetarium. In this program, visitors of all ages can enjoy learning about upcoming celestial events.” 

Backyard Stargazing is free for GRPM members and only $2 (per link) for the general public. Capacity is limited; early registration is recommended. Only one ticket link is needed per household. Tickets can be reserved or purchased a grpm.org/Calendar.

Meet-ups are in webinar style held via Zoom, so attendees will be able to see the GRPM panelists, but not each other. A brief Q & A session will follow the presentation. 

The Grand Rapids Public Museum is now open and welcoming visitors. Explore three floors of core exhibitions, along with Bodies Revealed, extended through September 27. Limited capacity; advance ticketing is required. For additional details about the new GRPM visitor experience, visit grpm.org/the-grpms-new-visitor-experience/. At this time, the Chaffee Planetarium is temporarily closed. For updates, please visit grpm.org.