McAuliffe-Shepard Discovery Center
Aircraft, spacecraft engineering, astronomy, and the stories of Christa McAuliffe and Alan Shepard connect local biography to exploration.
Artwork inspired by Augustus Saint-Gaudens
New Hampshire’s space legacy anchors a working planetarium. Aircraft, spacecraft engineering, astronomy, and the stories of Christa McAuliffe and Alan Shepard connect local biography to exploration. The place is most legible as a whole: planetarium dome supplies the anchor, while Mercury capsule and McAuliffe gallery widen the interpretation.
Reserve a planetarium show, then use the Mercury capsule displays to compare human scale with mission hardware. Planetarium capacity is limited and show tickets may be separate from general admission. Keep McAuliffe gallery in the plan, because its quieter evidence often explains why Mercury capsule looks, works, or matters as it does.
- Named for
- Two NH astronauts
- Feature
- Planetarium
- City
- Concord
Quick guide
- Start with
- Reserve a planetarium show, then use the Mercury capsule displays to compare human scale with mission hardware.
- Look closely at
- Notice how Mercury capsule changes the meaning of McAuliffe gallery rather than treating either as background.
Know before you go
- Start with
- Reserve a planetarium show, then use the Mercury capsule displays to compare human scale with mission hardware.
- Look closely at
- Notice how Mercury capsule changes the meaning of McAuliffe gallery rather than treating either as background.
- Connect the story
- Connect McAuliffe and Shepard’s biographies to the engineering, risk, and public imagination represented by the planetarium and spacecraft.
- Plan around
- Review hours, admission, parking, and access together before planning McAuliffe-Shepard Discovery Center; each addresses a different practical constraint.
Good to know
Planetarium capacity is limited and show tickets may be separate from general admission. Confirm the current schedule and access conditions before setting out.
Notice these
- planetarium dome
- Mercury capsule
- McAuliffe gallery