Take an out-of-this-world visit along the Sagan Planet Walk! This 1,200 meters long (3/4-mile), 1:5 billion, scale model of the solar system was built in 1997 as a memorial to Ithaca resident and astronomer Carl Sagan.
The walk begins with the Sun station at the downtown Ithaca Commons and ends at the station representing the dwarf planet, Pluto, located at the Sciencenter. Each station has a scale model of the planet and an informational plaque.
Along the way, you might discover that the sunny side of Mercury is hotter than a pizza oven, or that it rains strong sulfuric acid on Venus, or that a year on Pluto takes 248 Earth years. Planning to land on Jupiter? Forget it – this planet is hot and gaseous, and has no solid surface.
Sagan Planet Walk
Discover the Solar System
PURCHASE A SOUVENIR PASSPORT:
You may purchase a “Passport to the Solar System” for $4 each to use as you embark on your 1,200-meter walk. These passports provide interesting facts about each planet and the Sun while posing questions to encourage discussion. Using this as a guide, you are invited to stop at each planet station to read the information provided in the passport and to have your passport stamped as proof of your “visit” to each planet. Each stamp is a Greek symbol that corresponds to the Sun or planet. Take your fully stamped, purchased passport to the Sciencenter for one free admission!
Locations where Passports are sold:
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Sciencenter, 601 1st Street
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15 Steps Gallery, 171 The Commons
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Cat’s Pajamas, in the DeWitt Mall
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Ticket Center Ithaca, 171 The Commons
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Ithaca/Tompkins County Convention & Visitors Bureau, 904 East Shore Drive
Plan Your Route:
