Planetarium and Observatory

The Dale Etheridge Planetarium at the College of Southern Nevada's Cheyenne campus is the only public planetarium in Southern Nevada - a 66-seat theater under a 30-foot dome, running public shows Friday evenings (6, 7 and 8 PM) and Saturdays (3:30, 6, 7 and 8 PM). Tickets are $6 general and $5 for seniors over 55, children under 12, active military, teachers and CSN students, with under-3s free. One catch on that discount: it's sold in person only, at the astronomy shop beside the theater, from roughly 15 minutes before showtime. When the sky cooperates the observatory opens free telescope viewing after the 8 PM show, and buying tickets for consecutive shows on the same evening halves the price of the extra ones.

Know what you're buying: this is a community-college teaching planetarium, not a Strip production. Charming, earnest and $6, with a short educational sky talk before each feature that fidgety toddlers may not survive; the 3:30 and 6 PM slots are the ones programmed for kids. It runs weekend evenings only, the small dome fills up, and late seating isn't allowed, so arrive with minutes to spare. Tickets bought in advance are never emailed - they wait at Will Call in the astronomy shop. One date to watch: on Saturday, September 19, 2026 the regular schedule gives way to a free community event for NASA's International Observe the Moon Night. The campus sits in North Las Vegas, a 15-to-20-minute drive from the Strip, with free, plentiful parking in the two lots beside the building.