The California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park will become the second embarkation point in the United States for a very special Journey to the Stars. On Saturday, September 26, the spectacular new space show makes its West Coast premier, and will be presented seven to 10 times each day through the fall of 2010 at the Academy's Morrison Planetarium.

Journey to the Stars - made possible through the sponsorship of Lockheed Martin Corporation - debuted on July 4th at New York City's Hayden Planetarium at the American Museum of Natural History, and is being made available to specially equipped planetaria across the country and around the world.

"The history of the universe is written in starlight, and in a very profound sense we study the stars in a search for ourselves," said Joanne Maguire, Executive Vice President of Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company. "Lockheed Martin is proud to sponsor Journey to the Stars, and we congratulate the California Academy of Sciences, the American Museum and their collaborators for once again demonstrating that wonder, curiosity, understanding and sharing are among the most profound expressions of our humanity."

Lockheed Martin supports institutions and initiatives that illuminate for young people the excitement of science, exploration and discovery through engaging educational experiences. An early spark of inspiration can ignite a passion for learning that will provide the next generation of teachers, scientists, engineers and business leaders who will take us into the future.

Journey to the Stars was developed by the American Museum of Natural History in collaboration with the California Academy of Sciences, as well as GOTO INC., Tokyo, Japan; Papalote Museo del Nino, Mexico City, Mexico; and the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C. The show was created with the major support and partnership of NASA, Science Mission Directorate, Heliophysics Division.

Together they created an immersive theater experience using extraordinary images from ground- and space-based telescopes, and stunning, never-before-seen visualizations of physics-based simulations that launch viewers through space and time to experience the life and death of stars in our night sky, including our own Sun. Visitors will tour familiar stellar formations, explore new celestial mysteries, and discover the fascinating, unfolding story that connects us all to the stars. The journey spans billions of years, beginning on Earth and extending beyond our galaxy and into the future before returning home. Those who come along may never see the night sky in the same way again.

Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company, a major operating unit of Lockheed Martin Corporation, designs and develops, tests, manufactures and operates a full spectrum of advanced-technology systems for national security and military, civil government and commercial customers. Chief products include human space flight systems; a full range of remote sensing, navigation, meteorological and communications satellites and instruments; space observatories and interplanetary spacecraft; laser radar; ballistic missiles; missile defense systems; and nanotechnology research and development.

Headquartered in Bethesda, Md., Lockheed Martin is a global security company that employs about 140,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration and sustainment of advanced technology systems, products and services. The corporation reported 2008 sales of $42.7 billion.

  Media Contact:  Buddy Nelson, (510) 797-0349; e-mail, buddynelson@mac.com



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SOURCE: Lockheed Martin