Field Trips

Welcome! These are no ordinary field trips. These are standards-aligned, career-focused packages combined with optional hands-on experience.

Cosmosphere’s team is ready to help you create an inspiring field trip to fit your schedule. As you’re planning, it may help to know that shows and activities are available on the hour and take approximately 50 minutes each. Your schedule may include 30 minutes for lunch, and you can bring sack lunches or pre-order lunch for your entire group through the Cosmosphere Cafe. Learn about two of the most popular field trip options below, and feel free to reach out with any questions.

To further help ignite your classroom’s interest in STEAM and space history, the Cosmosphere has wonderful free resources. The LaunchNext site includes LaunchWonder, which provides Virtual Tours; Featured Exhibits that offer access to supporting documentation and historical resources; digital images of artifacts; and our Resource Vault, where you’ll find transcripts and video recordings with amazing subject matter experts. And it’s all free!

Ready for the adventure of a lifetime? It all starts here.

Shows and activities are available on the hour and take around 50 minutes each. Estimated time includes lunch. You can bring a sack lunch or pre-order lunch for your entire group through the Cosmosphere Cafe.

Please note: Field Trips are available Wednesday – Friday through Memorial Day and Monday – Thursday during the summer.

Mission Pass

Includes a visit to the Hall of Space Museum (self-guided tour guide available), one show in the Justice Planetarium, one show in Dr. Goddard’s Lab, and an optional documentary in the Carey Digital Dome Theater (add-on). Please allow a minimum of three hours for field trip.

One show in Dr. Goddard’s Rocket Lab
One show in the Justice Planetarium
Self-Guided Museum Tour or Scavenger Hunt
Optional documentary in the Carey Digital Dome Theater ($6 add-on. Allow for four hours.)

Activities + Standards

Dr. Goddard’s Rocket Lab Experience

Take a trip back in time to the 1930s lab of Dr. Robert Goddard, the father of modern rocketry. This interactive show— packed with some explosive surprises— uses live demonstrations to take students on a journey through the history of rockets.

Dr. Goddard’s Lab Standards

K-PS2-1; K-PS2-2
3-PS2-1; 3-PS2-2
MS-PS2-1; MS-PS2-2
HS-PS2-1

Dr. Goddard’s Lab: Chemistry

In this interactive and explosive live science show, students learn the basics about atoms, elements, molecules, chemical versus physical reactions, and much more!

Dr. Goddard’s Lab Chemistry Standards

2-PS1-1; 2-PS1-3; 2-PS1-4
5-PS1-1; 5-PS1-3; 5-PS1-4
MS-PS1-1; MS-PS1-2; MS-PS1-5
HS-PS1-1; HS-PS1-2; HS-PS1-5; HS-PS1-7

Justice Planetarium Show Options

Grades K-2

Night Sky Live Journey through the night sky of each season during this engaging live production. You’ll discover why we have seasons and how the sky changes throughout the year. At each stop, you’ll learn about bright constellations and dazzling deep-sky objects. To wrap up, you’ll receive a preview of tonight’s sky so you can go out and stargaze yourself! (1-ESS1-2)

Grades 3-5

Apollo 11 Learn about the Space Race and the heart of NASA’s most celebrated mission, Apollo 11, which put men on the Moon.
Night Sky Live Journey through the night sky of each season during this engaging live production. You’ll discover why we have seasons and how the sky changes throughout the year. At each stop, you’ll learn about bright constellations and dazzling deep-sky objects. To wrap up, you’ll receive a preview of tonight’s sky so you can go out and stargaze yourself! (1-ESS1-1)
Oasis in Space transports the audience on a beautiful voyage through our universe, galaxy, and solar system in search of liquid water, a key ingredient for life on Earth. (5-ESS1-1)
Destination Mars Explore the work being done around the globe to help make the dream of getting humans to Mars a reality. Fly through the International Space Station, where astronauts are already living and working in space, and follow the rockets and vehicles that will take humans beyond the Moon and, one day, all the way to Mars! Travel along as we imagine this remarkable journey. (3-5-ETS1-1; 3-5 ETS1-2; 3-5-ETS1-3)
Soundscapes Through giant screen images, surround sound, and live presentation, Global Soundscapes takes you on an ear-opening journey into the science of sound and the emerging field of soundscape ecology. (4-PS3-2)

Grades 6-8

Night Sky Live Journey through the night sky of each season during this engaging live production. You’ll discover why we have seasons and how the sky changes throughout the year. At each stop, you’ll learn about bright constellations and dazzling deep-sky objects. To wrap up, you’ll receive a preview of tonight’s sky so you can go out and stargaze yourself! (MS-ESS1-1; MS-ESS1-3)
Destination Mars Explore the work being done around the globe to help make the dream of getting humans to Mars a reality. Fly through the International Space Station, where astronauts are already living and working in space, and follow the rockets and vehicles that will take humans beyond the Moon and, one day, all the way to Mars! Travel along as we imagine this remarkable journey. (MS-ESS1-3; MS-ETS1-4)
Apollo 11 Learn about the Space Race and the heart of NASA’s most celebrated mission, Apollo 11, which put men on the Moon.
Secret Lives of Stars: Narrated by Patrick Stewart, viewers witness an amazing variety of stars and peer into their secret lives. Some stars are massive. Others are tiny, nearly insignificant. The specific characteristics of a star will determine what type of life it will lead, how long it might live, and even the type of death it will die. (MS-ESS1-3)
Soundscapes Through giant screen images, surround sound, and live presentation, Global Soundscapes takes you on an ear-opening journey into the science of sound and the emerging field of soundscape ecology. (MS-PS4-2)

Grades 9-12

Night Sky Live Journey through the night sky of each season during this engaging live production. You’ll discover why we have seasons and how the sky changes throughout the year. At each stop, you’ll learn about bright constellations and dazzling deep-sky objects. To wrap up, you’ll receive a preview of tonight’s sky so you can go out and stargaze yourself! (HS-ESS1-4)
Apollo 11 Learn about the Space Race and the heart of NASA’s most celebrated mission, Apollo 11, which put men on the Moon.
Destination Mars Explore the work being done around the globe to help make the dream of getting humans to Mars a reality. Fly through the International Space Station, where astronauts are already living and working in space, and follow the rockets and vehicles that will take humans beyond the Moon and, one day, all the way to Mars! Travel along as we imagine this remarkable journey. (HS-ETS1-1; HS-ETS1-2)
Black Holes: Narrated by actor Liam Neeson, the production features high-resolution visualizations of cosmic phenomena, working with data generated by supercomputer simulations to bring the current science of black holes to the dome screen.
CRISPR: Learn about the gene editing discovery of CRISPR

Pricing

Per Person: $8.50 + tax

Lunch available: $7.50 per person

(Three week advance registration required)

Mission Pass+

Includes a visit to the Hall of Space Museum (guided tour available), one show in the Justice Planetarium, one show in Dr. Goddard’s Lab, STEAM activity, and an optional documentary in the Carey Digital Dome Theater (add-on). Please allow a minimum of four hours for field trip.

One show in Dr. Goddard’s Rocket Lab
One show in the Justice Planetarium
Guided tour of the Hall of Space Museum
One STEAM Activity
Optional documentary in the Carey Digital Dome Theater ($6 add-on. Allow for five hours.)

Activities + Standards

Dr. Goddard’s Rocket Lab Experience

Dr. Goddard’s Lab Standards

K-PS2-1; K-PS2-2
3-PS2-1; 3-PS2-2
MS-PS2-1; MS-PS2-2
HS-PS2-1

Dr. Goddard’s Lab: Chemistry

In this interactive and explosive live science show, students learn the basics about atoms, elements, molecules, chemical versus physical reactions, and much more!

Dr. Goddard’s Lab Chemistry Standards

2-PS1-1; 2-PS1-3; 2-PS1-4
5-PS1-1; 5-PS1-3; 5-PS1-4
MS-PS1-1; MS-PS1-2; MS-PS1-5
HS-PS1-1; HS-PS1-2; HS-PS1-5; HS-PS1-7

Justice Planetarium Show Options

Grades K-2

Night Sky Live Journey through the night sky of each season during this engaging live production. You’ll discover why we have seasons and how the sky changes throughout the year. At each stop, you’ll learn about bright constellations and dazzling deep-sky objects. To wrap up, you’ll receive a preview of tonight’s sky so you can go out and stargaze yourself! (1-ESS1-2)

Grades 3-5

Apollo 11 Learn about the Space Race and the heart of NASA’s most celebrated mission, Apollo 11, which put men on the Moon.
Night Sky Live Journey through the night sky of each season during this engaging live production. You’ll discover why we have seasons and how the sky changes throughout the year. At each stop, you’ll learn about bright constellations and dazzling deep-sky objects. To wrap up, you’ll receive a preview of tonight’s sky so you can go out and stargaze yourself! (1-ESS1-1)
Oasis in Space transports the audience on a beautiful voyage through our universe, galaxy, and solar system in search of liquid water, a key ingredient for life on Earth. (5-ESS1-1)
Destination Mars Explore the work being done around the globe to help make the dream of getting humans to Mars a reality. Fly through the International Space Station, where astronauts are already living and working in space, and follow the rockets and vehicles that will take humans beyond the Moon and, one day, all the way to Mars! Travel along as we imagine this remarkable journey. (3-5-ETS1-1; 3-5 ETS1-2; 3-5-ETS1-3)
Soundscapes Through giant screen images, surround sound, and live presentation, Global Soundscapes takes you on an ear-opening journey into the science of sound and the emerging field of soundscape ecology. (4-PS3-2)

Grades 6-8

Night Sky Live Journey through the night sky of each season during this engaging live production. You’ll discover why we have seasons and how the sky changes throughout the year. At each stop, you’ll learn about bright constellations and dazzling deep-sky objects. To wrap up, you’ll receive a preview of tonight’s sky so you can go out and stargaze yourself! (MS-ESS1-1; MS-ESS1-3)
Destination Mars Explore the work being done around the globe to help make the dream of getting humans to Mars a reality. Fly through the International Space Station, where astronauts are already living and working in space, and follow the rockets and vehicles that will take humans beyond the Moon and, one day, all the way to Mars! Travel along as we imagine this remarkable journey. (MS-ESS1-3; MS-ETS1-4)
Apollo 11 Learn about the Space Race and the heart of NASA’s most celebrated mission, Apollo 11, which put men on the Moon.
Secret Lives of Stars: Narrated by Patrick Stewart, viewers witness an amazing variety of stars and peer into their secret lives. Some stars are massive. Others are tiny, nearly insignificant. The specific characteristics of a star will determine what type of life it will lead, how long it might live, and even the type of death it will die. (MS-ESS1-3)
Soundscapes Through giant screen images, surround sound, and live presentation, Global Soundscapes takes you on an ear-opening journey into the science of sound and the emerging field of soundscape ecology. (MS-PS4-2)

Grades 9-12

Night Sky Live Journey through the night sky of each season during this engaging live production. You’ll discover why we have seasons and how the sky changes throughout the year. At each stop, you’ll learn about bright constellations and dazzling deep-sky objects. To wrap up, you’ll receive a preview of tonight’s sky so you can go out and stargaze yourself! (HS-ESS1-4)
Apollo 11 Learn about the Space Race and the heart of NASA’s most celebrated mission, Apollo 11, which put men on the Moon.
Destination Mars Explore the work being done around the globe to help make the dream of getting humans to Mars a reality. Fly through the International Space Station, where astronauts are already living and working in space, and follow the rockets and vehicles that will take humans beyond the Moon and, one day, all the way to Mars! Travel along as we imagine this remarkable journey. (HS-ETS1-1; HS-ETS1-2)
Black Holes: Narrated by actor Liam Neeson, the production features high-resolution visualizations of cosmic phenomena, working with data generated by supercomputer simulations to bring the current science of black holes to the dome screen.
CRISPR: Learn about the gene editing discovery of CRISPR

STEAM Activity Options

Grades K-2

Living in Space: Presentation on how astronauts live and work in space (K-LS1-1; K-ESS2-2; KESS3-1)
Build a Better Lander: Engineering design challenge for students to build a model lunar lander and land 6 astronauts to the ground safely (K-2-ETS1-1; K-2-ETS1-2)
LOXIC: Presentation where an educator makes ice cream using liquid nitrogen
Radiation Art: Create art using the sun (1-PS4-2; 1-PS4-3)
Race the Mouse: Students try to make it through a maze faster than our trained Cosmosphere mouse
Characteristics of Life: Students discuss the criteria of living vs. non-living things and create new alien life forms. (K-LS1-1; 1-LS1-2)
Robotics: Sphero Indi’s – learn the basics of robotics and coding.

Grades 3-5

Living in Space: Presentation on how astronauts live and work in space (3-LS4-3; LS3-2)
Radiation Art: Create art using the sun (1-PS4-2; 1-PS4-3)
Build a Better Lander: Engineering design challenge for students to build a model lunar lander and land 6 astronauts to the ground safely (3-5-ETS1-1; 3-5-ETS1-2; 3-5-ETS1-3)
LOXIC: Presentation where an educator makes ice cream using liquid nitrogen
Race the Mouse: Students try to make it through a maze faster than our trained Cosmosphere mouse
Challenge Course: Complete various challenges using teamwork, collaboration, and communication skills
Air Rockets: Launch a paper rocket using air pressure (3-5-ETS1-1; 3-5-ETS1-2; 3-5-ETS1-3)
Maze Robotics (limit 30/group): Program a Sphero robot to make its way through a maze
Battery Build: Build a replica of one of the earliest batteries using pennies and zinc washers (4-PS3-2; 4-PS3-4)
LB7 Switch Activity: Create a unique switch to blast the door off the mini LB7 model (3-PS2-3)
Rocket Crawl: Engineering design challenge for students to make a vehicle to deliver a rocket to the launch platform safely (3-PS2-3) (3-5-ETS1-1; 3-5-ETS1-2; 3-5-ETS1-3)
Acids and Bases: Students test everyday household products to determine if they are acids or bases (5-PS1-3)

Grades 6-8

Living in Space: Presentation on how astronauts live and work in space (MS-LS2-3)
Radiation Art: Create art using the sun
Build a Better Lander: Engineering design challenge for students to build a model lunar lander and land 6 astronauts to the ground safely (MS-PS2-1) (MS-ETS1-1; MS-ETS1-2; MS-ETS1-4)
LOXIC: Presentation where an educator makes ice cream using liquid nitrogen
Race the Mouse: Students try to make it through a maze faster than our trained Cosmosphere mouse
Challenge Course: Complete various challenges using teamwork, collaboration, and communication skills
Air Rockets: Launch a paper rocket using air pressure (MS-ETS1-1; MS-ETS1-2; MS-ETS1-4)
Maze Robotics (limit 30): Program a Sphero robot to make its way through a maze
Battery Build: Build a replica of one of the earliest batteries using pennies and zinc washers (MS-PS2-3)
LB7 Switch Activity: Create a unique switch to blast the door off the mini LB7 model (MS-ETS1-1; MS-ETS1-2; MS-ETS1-4)
Rocket Crawl: Engineering design challenge for students to make a vehicle to deliver a rocket to the launch platform safely (MS-ETS1-1; MS-ETS1-2; MS-ETS1-4)
Acids and Bases: Students test everyday household products to determine if they are acids or bases (MS-PS1-2)
Apollo 13 Challenge: Students recreate building the carbon dioxide filter on Apollo 13.
Spectroscopy: Students study unique light patterns to determine if exoplanets could possibly sustain life (MS-PS4-2)

Grades 9-12:

Living in Space: Presentation on how astronauts live and work in space
Radiation Art: Create art using the sun
Build a Better Lander: Engineering design challenge for students to build a model lunar lander and land 6 astronauts to the ground safely (HS-PS2-3) (HS-ETS1-2; HS-ETS1-3)
LOXIC: Presentation where an educator makes ice cream using liquid nitrogen
Race the Mouse: Students try to make it through a maze faster than our trained Cosmosphere mouse
Challenge Course: Complete various challenges using teamwork, collaboration, and communication skills
Air Rockets: Launch a paper rocket using air pressure (HS-ETS1-2; HS-ETS1-3)
Maze Robotics (limit 30): Program a Sphero robot to make its way through a maze
Virtual Reality (VR) (limit 15): Use the SAFER (Simplified Aid For EVA Rescue) to try and return safely to the International Space Station after being disconnected on a spacewalk
Battery Build: Build a replica of one of the earliest batteries using pennies and zinc washers (HS-PS3-3)
LB7 Switch Activity: Create a unique switch to blast the door off the mini LB7 model (HS-ETS1-2; HS-ETS1-3)
Rocket Crawl: Engineering design challenge for students to make a vehicle to deliver a rocket to the launch platform safely (HS-ETS1-2; HS-ETS1-3)
Acids and Bases: Students test everyday household products to determine if they are acids or bases (HS-PS2-6)
Apollo 13 Challenge: Students recreate building the carbon dioxide filter on Apollo 13.
Spectroscopy: Students study unique light patterns to determine if exoplanets could possibly sustain life
RTG: Engineering Design challenge to build the best power source for a Martian colony (HS-PS3-3)