What to Know”Deep Flights,” a Sci-Fi Sound Bath, will summon sonic flows at the Sierra Madre Playhouse Feb. 13 at 7 p.m. and 9:30 p.m.Solar System Encounter is on view at Discovery Cube OC in Santa Ana through Feb. 22The Celestial Globe, the Griffith Observatory’s first new major exhibit almost two decades, goes on view Jan. 27The Dark Sky Fest will shimmer in Death Valley National Park from Feb. 6-8

For many astronomy fans, the start of a new year involves checking the calendar, all to discover when the moon will be full and the weeks when marvelous meteor showers are expected to grace our skies.

But the first weeks of 2026 are feeling especially cosmic for Southern California as a trio of cultural happenings give us a chance to touch outer space, at least for an hour or two.

A sound bath with stellar vibes is setting down at the Sierra Madre Playhouse the night before Valentine’s. Prepare to board some “Deep Flights” and sail sonically to the stars with composers Chuck Jonkey and Stephen James Taylor at the lead.

Do feel free to arrive with your yoga mat for the cinematic evening, a peace-out happening that will include “long tones, resonant drones, and layered harmonics,” aural notes that will help to create “… a sound field that invites stillness, introspection, and transcendence.”

There are two after-sunset sessions Feb. 13, and the tickets, priced at $30, are available now.

Other art-forward space journeys and space sights adding shimmer to our earthbound area in the days ahead.

Solar System Encounter at Discovery Cube OC has a room filled with “colossal” planets, and the sun and the moon, giving kids and grown-ups the opportunity to roam by Mars and Mercury, no rocketship required.

Imagery from the James Webb Telescope adds realism to the fantastical yet astronomically accurate exhibit; check out more, including museum admission, here.

Heading to Griffith Observatory? The first “major” exhibit in over 19 years goes on view Jan. 27: It’s the Celestial Globe, an 800-pound sphere boasting dozens of classical constellations.

Observatory entry is free; find designer Cindy Ingraham Keefer’s ethereal artwork on display in Gravity’s Stairway.

And if you turn your saucer for Death Valley National Park in early February, a Dark Sky Fest will peer into the deep pockets of space and offer a host of cool day and night activities, from Feb. 6 through 8.