Adler Planetarium

The Adler Planetarium is a planetarium in Chicago, Illinois, located in the United States. Max Adler founded and built Doctrine in 1930, with the help of the first director, Philip Fox. It is on Northerly Island, on the museum campus facing Lake Michigan, near the Field Museum of Natural History and the Shedd Aquarium.

The Adler Planetarium is a public astronomy and astrophysics museum. Max Adler, a Chicago businessman, started it in 1930. The Adler Planetarium is located on the northeastern extremity of Northerly Island on Lake Michigan in Chicago, Illinois, and is part of Chicago's Museum Campus, which also contains the John G. Shedd Aquarium and The Field Museum. The Adler's purpose is to encourage cosmic inquiry and understanding.

On May 12, 1930, the Adler Planetarium opened to the public. In 1931, its architect, Ernest A. Grunsfeld Jr., received the gold medal from the Chicago chapter of the American Institute of Architects for his design. In 1987, it was designated a National Historic Landmark.

Establishment

In 1913, the Deutsches Museum's Oskar von Miller commissioned Carl Zeiss Works to create a device that projected images of celestial planets onto a dome. Walther Bauersfeld accomplished this, and his innovation became known as a planetarium when it appeared in 1923. Its popularity grew swiftly, and by 1929, Germany had fifteen planetariums, two in Italy, one in Russia, and one in Austria. Max Adler, a former Sears, Roebuck & Co. executive in Chicago, Illinois, had recently resigned to focus on charitable initiatives, mainly on behalf of the musical and Jewish communities. However, after hearing a friend describe a Munich planetarium, Adler felt that a planetarium would fit in nicely with Chicago's growing Museum Campus. Adler went to the Munich planetarium with his cousin, architect Ernest Grunsfeld Jr., who was hired to build the Chicago facility. He also learnt of W. M. Mensing's auction of astrological equipment and antiquities in Amsterdam, which he acquired the next year. The Astronomical Museum centred on the Mensing Collection. In 1928, Adler offered $500,000 for the building of the Western Hemisphere's first planetarium.

Your Stop

Prepare for takeoff!

Your visit to the Adler Planetarium on Chicago's Museum Campus will undoubtedly be extraordinary! We understand that when planning your perfect trip to the museum, you want the best experience possible, which is why we've gathered all of the pertinent information in one place!

public hours

Monday: 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

CLOSED on Tuesday (school groups only)

Wednesday: 4:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.

CLOSED on Thursday (school groups only)

Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Saturday: 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Sunday: 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.