BOWLING GREEN, Ky. — Western Kentucky University’s Hardin Planetarium will celebrate the 50th anniversary of Pink Floyd’s 1973 iconic album “The Dark Side of the Moon” with an unprecedented sight and sound experience of the album. The show will immerse the viewer in both the songs of the album and stunning imagery in the full-dome planetarium.

What You Need To Know

  • Western Kentucky University's Hardin Planetarium is celebrating the 50th anniversary of "The Dark Side of the Moon" release with a special show

  • The show will immerse viewers in the sounds and images of the album in the full-dome planetarium

  • Pink Floyd's record-breaking album was on the Billboard 200 for 937 weeks

  • The album became associated with planetariums after the band performed the songs live at a planetarium

“The Dark Side of the Moon: 50 Years in a Heartbeat” will open with showings at 8 p.m. July 21 and July 22. A full schedule of shows is available when buying tickets, but it will mostly run on Friday nights until April 2024. Unlike Hardin Planetarium’s normal free presentations, tickets for this Dark Side of the Moon anniversary experience may be purchased through the planetarium’s website. All proceeds support Hardin Planetarium. 

“We are delighted that Hardin Planetarium is one of only a few places in the United States where this 50th-year commemoration can be experienced,” said Dr. Michael Carini, department head of Physics and Astronomy at WKU and interim planetarium director. “This is a unique, short-lived opportunity as this show will not be available anywhere in the world after March 31, 2024.”

“It is awesome to behold what has been created,” noted Chris Chandler, planetarium specialist, when describing the show. “This isn’t merely entertainment; it features NASA missions past, present, and near future, all set to music played at proper Pink Floyd volume. It is quite an experience with the planetarium’s new sound system.”

Chandler said that the goal was to compliment the planetarium’s regular education focused shows with occasional, high-profile entertainment in order to bring more people to Bowling Green and to WKU, as Hardin Planetarium continues its mission to fuse education and entertainment. 

The Hardin Planetarium is located at 1501 State St.

Pink Floyd’s record shattering album “The Dark Side of the Moon” was released in 1973 and stayed on the Billboard 200 charts for 937 weeks. The common association of this album with planetariums began a year before its release, as the band first performed the songs live in a planetarium.

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