There will be a day of free programs – including a special visit from a NASA astronaut – on Saturday at the Kenner Planetarium, 2020 Fourth Street. Saturday’s special events from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. celebrate both the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing and the 20th anniversary of the opening of the Space Station Kenner exhibit in Rivertown.

“We’ve put together a fun and informative family event to mark these two very important anniversaries,” Mayor Ben Zahn. “This is a great opportunity to take advantage of a free day with special programs at the Kenner planetarium.”

A live action show – “The Adventures of Cosmo & Gibbous,” begins at 11 a.m. The planetarium show “Capcom Go! The Apollo Story” will begin at noon and again at 2 p.m. Dr. Charles G. Seab, UNO astrophysicist, will give the presentation “To the Moon” at 1 p.m. and NASA astronaut Col. James F. Buchli will share some of his experiences beginning at 3 p.m.

Buchli, who was inducted earlier this year into the US Astronaut Hall of Fame, was a Marine Corps fighter pilot with 25 years of military service before retiring and becoming a NASA astronaut in 1979. He is a veteran of four space flights and has orbited the earth 319 times.

In addition, solar telescope viewing led by the Pontchartrain Astronomy Society will be available from 12 to 3 p.m., there will be an Apollo 11 photo exhibit and visitors can tour the ISS prototype and Space Station Kenner.

“If you haven’t been to the planetarium, this is a great chance to see a wonderful hidden treasure and have a great day of fun at no cost,” Mayor Zahn said.