J. Frederick Ching Planetarium

The J. Frederic Ching Planetarium has been enchanting audiences with the wonders of astronomy and space science since its original construction in 1962. A renovated and updated facility reopened in 2005, ushering in a new digital era for Hartnell's planetarium with the Konica Minolta Mediaglobe projection system. Our facility offers public programs, support to Hartnell's astronomy classes, and hosts thousands of visiting elementary school students from Monterey County and beyond each year. Apart from showing the night sky and its countless stars across a thirty foot diamter dome, modern immersive imagery can transport planetarium visitors through space and into many other astonishing virtual worlds of scientific discovery.