Destination: Morehead Planetarium and Science Center

The show, recommended for ages 4 to 6, features Elmo, Big Bird and a new friend from China. They compare the sky above Sesame Street to the one in China and note the similarities. There are songs and other opportunities for kids to get involved in the action on the 360-degree screen above.

Both my kids, ages 2 and 7, enjoyed the show. Following the characters around the giant screen was exciting, but they also came away with a bit of information about stars and constellations too. I highly recommend this show, which will be featured at Morehead through October and likely won't return until next summer.

But "One World, One Sky" is just one of the reasons that Morehead is such a fantastic destination for families in the Triangle.

Opened in 1949, Morehead served as a training center for astronauts in the 1960s and early 1970s. Today, the center offers regular planetarium shows and exhibits, along with science shows, skywatching sessions, special events and more.

Other than the summer and the week after Christmas, Morehead is only open to the public on the weekends. Weekdays are reserved for school groups. However, if a school doesn't use all the seats for a show that it has reserved on a weekday, Morehead will make tickets available to the public for the extra seats. That's not advertised because Morehead staff is never sure exactly how many seats a school will need. But, if you find yourself in downtown Chapel Hill, it could be worth a shot.

One note: "Magic Tree House: Space Mission," based on the popular "Magic Tree House" series, which my seven-year-old, who devoured the book series as a kindergartner, loved, is not scheduled for the fall or winter. It's likely the show will return in the spring.

To hear more about Morehead, watch my video interview with Adam Phelps, Morehead's guest relations manager.

Find Morehead Planetarium on Franklin Street in downtown Chapel Hill on the campus of UNC-Chapel Hill.