Pedro Pascal, star of The Mandalorian and The Last of Us, is slated to appear in a new Planetarium show at the American Museum of Natural History this June. 

The new show is titled Encounters in the Milky Way and explores the Milky Way

galaxy in novel ways, detailing its evolution from an unassuming cloud of dust to the star-filled galaxy we know today.

To many, however, Pascal may be the main star of the show. His appearance in The Mandalorian was met with widespread acclaim and viewership, with the season three finale alone being viewed by 5.39 million. Pascal has become a name associated strongly with sci-fi, promising to draw a new generation of the space-curious to the Planetarium.

Leslie Molette, a finance major, noted that “[Pascal] will be able to use his role from The Mandalorian to help people know more about space.” The sentiment is shared by many, as numerous Pascal fan accounts have begun to share information about his new project with his 10 million-strong fanbase.

The Hayden Planetarium’s show is also interesting due to its use of a decade of star tracking data from the European Space Agency’s Gaia space telescope to project both past and future states of our galaxy.

The Gaia space telescope’s examination of Milky Way stars has concluded that the Sagittarius galaxy, over 65,000 light-years away, led to gravitational disturbances in the Milky Way and influenced star formation. One of these disturbances happened around the formation of the sun 4.7 billion years ago. This new data allows for the Planetarium’s show to closely detail how our very own star formed and how our place in the Milky Way is the product of long-past events.

The use of these recent findings demonstrates the Planetarium’s commitment to using modern data alongside popular current stars.

Science popularization is a difficult balance between ensuring accuracy while still attracting audiences. While the Gaia mission led to numerous interesting findings, the dry nature of astronomical data collection can be a barrier to informing the public.

Similarly, shows like The Mandalorian present a vivid yet not entirely accurate picture of space exploration. The combination of stunning visuals, Pascal’s signature friendly narration and a decade’s worth of data promise a bright star show for the wide variety of audiences who visit the Museum of Natural History.

The show opens on June 9 for regular entry and costs $30 for general admission and a single view.