It may be an unusual way to encourage children to visit a planetarium, but it seems to be working. Taylor Swift light shows appear to be the new rage at planetariums across the country.
The image above comes from the light show at the Saint Louis planetarium, though you can find similar shows at planetariums in Springfield, Massachusetts, Laramie, Wyoming, and Boulder, Colorado.
I suppose this is a way to introduce some kids to the existence of the planetarium while also paying the overhead for the planetarium itself. It would be nice to learn whether the same crowd comes back later to learn more about the solar system and universe, though I have not seen much press on that relationship.
One can only hope that the real stars eventually outshine the Earth-bound ones for some of these children. Maybe the visit will even lead to more interest in the planets, such as Saturn. After all, didn’t Taylor sing about that planet in her song Seven?
Sweet tea in the summer
Cross your heart, won’t tell no other
And though I can’t recall your face
I still got love for you
Your braids like a pattern
Love you to the moon and to Saturn
Passed down like folk songs
The love lasts so long