Plans for a new planetarium in Mississauga
/The mandate of the Earthshine Astronomy and Space Science Organization (EASSO) is to fund, build and run a new planetarium in Mississauga. It has been nearly 18 years since the closure of the McLaughlin Planetarium in downtown Toronto. There are local planetaria - there is a small planetarium at the Ontario Science Centre and at museums in London and Kitchener-Waterloo. But the GTA lacks a dedicated facility which serves to offer visitors a real opportunity to explore the universe within the city.
Across the country, the planetaria in Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton WInnipeg and Montreal have all been upgraded in the last few years. Toronto and its surroundings is the largest metropolitan area in the world to not support a large astronomy facility.
In the short term we are considering purchasing a smaller portable planetarium. To gauge community support we ask that if you agree with this plan and want to see a planetarium in Mississauga, you visit our web site and sign up on our Get Involved page.
We invite you to share with us your ideas and thoughts about the possibility of a new facility in our city. We are also looking for volunteers with skills that can help us to reach our goal.
Meanwhile Earthshine is planning a lot of astronomy activities in Mississauga in collaboration with its partner the RASC. We hope you can join us.
Thanks!