Star Gazing Room
Payne Family Native American Center
Housed in the Elouise Cobell Land and Culture Institute, UM’s planetarium is known as the Star Gazing Room in the Payne Family Native American Center (PFNAC). Now open for public, private, and school shows we invite you to join us as we view the wonders of the night sky and explore the cosmos.
Public Shows
Constellations, planets, currently visible deep-sky objects, and exciting upcoming celestial events - our presenters design live shows to dive deeper into the cosmos and foster a greater understanding of our universe. Our shows are always live, our planetarium presenters are passionate astronomers with active research activities. You might hear about the star lore of different cultures, discoveries in solar physics, planetary exploration, the search for exoplanets, galaxies and cosmology, and recent space science mission discoveries. Every show is unique.
Tickets
Tickets for all public evening shows are $8 per person plus applicable service charge. Tickets are available on .
All public shows are held on Friday evenings, with two shows per evening at 6 PM and 7 PM. Check out our current semester schedule and get your tickets today.
Please arrive 10 minutes early for your show. Once the show begins, there will be no late admittance.
School and Private Shows
In addition to public evenings, we provide programs for schools, homeschool and/or youth groups, summer camps. You can even book the planetarium for a private group!
Scheduling and pricing information for these types of shows can be found on the school groups and private group booking pages.
Planetarium Policies and Courtesies
Planetarium Behavior
- During the day, many classes are held in the Native American Center - please be quiet as a mouse when entering/exiting the building.
- Light and sound travel well in our planetarium - silence cell phones and put them away.
- Our equipment is what makes the planetarium a planetarium - please give it some space.
- Food or drink is not allowed in the planetarium.
- Remain seated once the show has begun. If you must leave the planetarium at any time during a show, please ask our presenter to help you safely exit. We wouldn't want you to fall in the dark.
- School and youth groups must have at least one chaperone for every 8 students.
Age Recommendations
The planetarium welcomes families to our shows. We do not have a minimum age restriction for children who attend. For public shows, we recommend an age of 7 and above. Shows are geared to adult audiences and the acoustics of our intimate planetarium make it necessary for participants to be silent during the 50-minute show.
For those with younger children, we offer school shows during the week. These programs are designed to engage and foster a child’s fascination with the sky and crafted for the specific age of each group.
Teachers interested in booking shows for their classes, please see the School Shows page.
Planetarium Capacity
The maximum number of attendees is 28. For school shows, the maximum number of attendees is 27, plus 3 chaperones.
How to Find the Planetarium
The Planetarium is inside the Payne Family Native American Center, located just east of Arthur Ave. adjacent to the Oval (shown here on our The Planetarium is in the lowest level of the building - look for the unique curvature of the wall - the "Star Gazing Room" - room 013.
Planetarium Parking
The closest parking lot to the Payne Family Native American Center (PFNAC) is the lot by Lommasson Hall. Parking is free in this lot after 5 pm. Hourly pay is possible during business hours. The lot is located directly off Arthur Avenue. To find the PFNAC building, exit the lot moving east (toward the 'M') and follow the path between the new Dining Hall and Duniway Hall. The PFNAC building will be right in front of you. You can enter through the back door or circle the building towards the oval to find the front entrance.