CONTACT: Rob Landis/STScI FOR RELEASE: January 9, 1995 410-338-4560 Martin Ratcliff 412-237-3399 HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE'S LATEST DISCOVERIES FEATURED IN MAJOR NEW PLANETARIUM SHOW Planetarium visitors around the world will have an opportunity to explore black holes, embryonic solar systems, primeval galaxies and other wonders of the universe as revealed by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope in a new planetarium program entitled "Through the Eyes of Hubble." The 40-minute multimedia show is a joint production of the Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, MD, and Henry Buhl, Jr. Planetarium and Observatory, Pittsburgh, PA. Following its March 17, 1995 debut at the Carnegie Science Center in Pittsburgh, the show will be sold, internationally, to other planetariums. Through computer graphics, multi-screened video projections, and dozens of special effect projectors the program presents a celestial array of spectacular Hubble results including observations of Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9's crash into Jupiter, protoplanetary systems in the Orion Nebula, monstrous black holes, infant galaxies, and other observations that may shed light on the fate of the cosmos itself. "Hubble's results are revolutionizing astronomy, and we are eager to share the intrigue and excitement of these discoveries with planetarium visitors worldwide, " says Dr. Robert Williams, Director of the Space Telescope Science Institute. "Our mission to educate the public about astronomical discovery is no less important than our operating the Hubble Space Telescope." "This joint project between the professional astronomers and The Carnegie Science Center's planetarium staff will take the public out to the edge of our knowledge about the universe," says Seddon Bennington, director of The Carnegie Science Center. "It's a wonderful collaboration that provides the broadest public audience an opportunity to see through a window to what's out there." Actress Gates McFadden, who plays Dr. Beverly Crusher in the television series "Star Trek The Next Generation" narrates the show. "For the last seven years I've had the opportunity to bring fictional space exploration into many lives in my role on Star Trek," she says. "Now, this is a wonderful opportunity to share in the real exploration of space. Though we can't yet travel to the stars, Hubble is boldly looking where no one has looked before." The producers estimate that millions of planetarium visitors around the world will have an opportunity to see "Through the Eyes of Hubble" over the next year. * * * * * * The Space Telescope Science Institute is operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc. (AURA) for NASA, under contract with the Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD. The Hubble Space Telescope is a project of international cooperation between NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA).