Lunar eclipse … Portable planetarium … SpongeBob SquarePants.
One of those things does not fit with the others unless it’s Liberty Science Center in Jersey City in the coming week.
It starts on Tuesday, Aug. 25 at 1:30 p.m., with New Jersey U. S. Senator Cory Booker coming to the center to present an oversized check for $559,000 to Liberty Science Center President and CEO Paul Hoffman to launch a “Portable Planetarium” initiative.
Then on Thursday, Aug. 27 at 6 p.m., the LSC After Dark’s first-ever Jellyfish Rave, aka Bikini Bottom Bash, as attendees over 21 will enjoy a brand-new SpongeBob Laser Show, dancing, and other activities before viewing the blood moon lunar eclipse around midnight.
The center’s new portable planetarium is mounted on two specially designed vehicles to deliver astronomy and Earth sciences programming to students of all ages across New Jersey. The center is home to the largest planetarium in the Western Hemisphere.
Hoffman commended Booker for funding the portable planetarium and for his longtime love of science and space, saying, “This very generous grant to our center for the new portable planetarium programming is a sterling manifestation of his commitment to ensure that countless thousands of children across New Jersey can experience the same wonders of science that he did and continues to have.”
The funding from Booker will also enable LSC to recruit, hire, and train new planetarium educators to deliver offsite programming and to develop new classroom workshops.
The Jellyfish Rave on Aug. 27 will feature not only dancing and eclipse watching, but also the following:
Tickets start at $24 and can be booked online at LSC.org/lsc-after-dark.
Ricardo Kaulessar covers Jersey City, including race, immigration, and culture, for NorthJersey.com. For unlimited access to the most important news from your local community, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.
Email: kaulessar@northjersey.com
Twitter/X: @ricardokaul