International Planetarium Society Conference underway in Baton Rouge | Arts & Culture

BATON ROUGE, LA — The Louisiana Art & Science Museum’s (LASM) Irene W. Pennington Planetarium is hosting the 21st International Planetarium Society Conference (IPS2012) July 22 through July 26, which will also offer several events open to the Baton Rouge community.

Monday, July 23

Opening Ceremony

Beginning at 9 a.m. in the Baton Rouge River Center’s Theatre for the Performing Arts, LASM invites you to join its Planetarium Director Jon Elvert, International Planetarium Society (IPS) President David Weinrich, LASM President and Executive Director Carol Gikas, Visit Baton Rouge President and CEO Paul J. Arrigo, Lt. Governor Jay Dardenne, and Mayor Kip Holden as the 650-plus delegates attending IPS2012 are welcomed.

Dr. Rolf Landua

Following the opening ceremony at 9:45 a.m. is a presentation by Dr. Rolf Landua of CERN, in which he will speak on Exploring the Early Universe: The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN. 

Dr. Landua is a renowned scientist whose work at CERN has succeeded in research findings and promotion of the public understanding of modern physics. He is also well-known for his work alongside Ron Howard during production of the film Angels & Demons.

For additional information on Dr. Landua’s speech, please visit www.ips2012.com. 

Tuesday, July 24

Dr. Michael Turner

There have been remarkable advances in our understanding of the Universe over the past 20 years, and with those understandings comes new mysteries to solve. Dr. Michael Turner from the University of Chicago will discuss this in his presentation, The Big Mysteries of Cosmology, July 24 at 9 a.m. in the Theatre for the Performing Arts.

Dr. Turner is a theoretical astrophysicist and the Bruce V. and Diana M. Rauner Distinguished Service Professor at the University of Chicago. He is considered a pioneer in the interdisciplinary field of particle astrophysics and cosmology.  His scholarly contributions include predicting cosmic acceleration and coining the term “Dark Energy.”

For additional information on Dr. Turner’s speech, please visit www.ips2012.com. 

Saving Hubble; World Premier 

In Association with IPS2012, a screening of Saving Hubble will debut at the Theatre for the Performing Arts at 7 p.m. Saving Hubble is the story of ordinary people finding their voice in the grassroots movement that saved the Hubble Space Telescope from an untimely death. It examines NASA's decision in 2004 to cancel the world's most famous telescope and introduces us to the people who united to save it.

Join Saving Hubble director David Gaynes, LASM Planetarium Director Jon Elvert, and LSU physics professor Dr. T. Gregory Guzik after the film for The Art of Hubble: Capturing the Public Imagination.

The event then moves outside the River Center where, weather permitting, telescopes will be provided  by the Baton Rouge Astronomical Society to observe the night sky. Acoustic rock group Kim Mollere and Company will play original music and cover tunes during the celestial observation.

For additional information on Saving Hubble and the downtown Capital City Grill after party:  www.lasm.org and http://capitalcitygrill.net/.

Contact LASM Communications Coordinator Tara Kistler at 225-344-5272 ext 125 or tkistler@lasm.org.