“The Hunt for Planet B" at the Figge Art Museum -- February 23.
Sunday, February 23, 3 p.m.
Figge Art Museum, 225 West Second Street, Davenport IA
Hailed by RogerEbert.com's Nick Allen as "an impassioned and unabashedly intellectual documentary" that "helps us stand back and remember just how essential science is to progress," The Hunt for Planet B serves as the fifth presentation in this year's QC Environmental Film Series hosted by River Action. Its February 23 presentation at Davenport's Figge Art Museum will treat viewers to what Science magazine called "a behind-the-scenes view of the technical complexities, personalities, and politics that go into building a multi-decade space mission."
Produced and directed by Nathaniel Kahn, the critically acclaimed documentary The Hunt for Planet B captures the human drama behind NASA's high-stakes Webb Telescope which launched on December 25, 2021. The film interweaves the creation of this massive machine - the most ambitious space observatory ever built - with the story of a pioneering group of female scientists on a quest to find life beyond our solar system. What begins as a real-time scientific adventure turns into a deep meditation on our place in the universe. On the brink of seeing farther out than ever before, we find ourselves looking back at our own imperiled planet with new eyes. Winner of the prestigious Golden Owl prize at the 2021 Berlin International Film Festival, The Hunt for Planet B was also the winner of the 2022 Emmy Award for Outstanding Science and Technology Documentary
Its screening hosted by Black Hawk College's Clean Sphere, The Hunt for Planet B will feature BHC physics professor serving as the event's reflection speaker, and earned this rave from The Hollywood Reporter: "For a subject that can seem impenetrable for anyone who’s not an astrophysicist from Stanford or MIT, Kahn’s film is extremely down-to-earth. It renders the project’s colossal scope — the Webb will be rocketed almost a million miles into space, using infrared sensors to detect radiation emitted by stars and planets thousands of light years away — graspable. But even more so, it manages to put a friendly, mostly female face to all the technical exploits and celestial theorizing, underlining how much the desire to uncover the secrets of the known universe is something that’s all-too human."
The Hunt for Planet B will be shown in the Figge Art Museum's John Deere Auditorium on February 23, admission to the 3 p.m. screening is $7 with students admitted free, and more information and tickets are available by calling (563)322-2926 and visiting RiverAction.org/filmseries.
