Fort Mill students explore space through Starlab, portable planetarium

FORT MILL, S.C. — Students in Fort Mill are getting a hands-on look at space without ever leaving campus. A new portable planetarium is giving York County students an immersive way to learn about astronomy, from the moon to the North Star.

“That’s insane how they sent humans up in space,” said fifth-grader Miles Markovitz.

He shared his awe while discussing the Artemis II mission, which sent astronauts around the moon.

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It was hard for Miles to envision until he and other students went inside Fort Mill’s Starlab on Wednesday.

The portable planetarium is a small space used to teach astronomy, space, and Earth sciences to thousands of Fort Mill school children.

Fort Mill students explore space through portable planetarium Fort Mill students explore the cosmos with a new portable planetarium, offering an immersive astronomy experience. The Starlab transforms classrooms into mini observatories, sparking curiosity about space missions and celestial wonders. With a $50,000 investment, the initiative aims to inspire the next generation of scientists and astronauts.

Starlab is a portable, inflatable dome that turns a regular room, like a classroom or gym, into a mini planetarium.

“I really liked it when they showed us the space race, and we got to go around the moon,” Miles said.

The instructor showed the school children what it would look like to fly around the moon.

“It’s so exciting for me as an educator to see kids passionate and excited about things and to see the light bulb turn on when we talk about the North Star and why the North Star doesn’t move,” said Gregory Brobst, K-12 science coordinator for the school district. “I do hope that we’re triggering some excitement in students and that they want to go study science or they want to be an astronaut.”