The streets of Montreal have changed in the space of a few days—from gray streets lined with twisted trees to a green canopy that smells of lilacs and is sprinkled with the white petals of small linden blossoms. This morning, it’s raining, and we endure the cold rain while thinking of last Saturday’s fuchsia sunset.
The city changes quickly, changes often, from hot to cold and from cold to hot. And we’re so used to it that moving to the Moon would be almost easy, wouldn’t it?
This weekend is the annual astronomy festival at the very retro-futuristic Montreal Planetarium. It’s completely free, lasts two days, and is perfect for fantasizing about life on other planets.
Living in Space
ASTROFEST is for scientists, kids who want to be astronauts when they grow up, those with a fear of hyperspace, and Trekkies who can do the Spock salute effortlessly.
Ever since the Artemis mission returned from its trip around the Moon, we’ve been allowing ourselves to dream, just like in the ’60s, of life in space, on other planets—preferably with Barbarella’s boots and the Jetsons’ bubble house.
Saturday, May 30, from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m., we can attend a series of lectures on new planets and the possibilities of colonizing the Universe. The first comprehensive analysis of an asteroid, the discovery of exoplanets, and Canada’s role in space exploration. It will be at the Théâtre du Chaos, aptly named for the occasion.
It will continue at the “AstroBistro” afterward, with interactive quizzes. From 9 p.m. to midnight, there will be marshmallows and telescope observations of the sky above Montreal. All weekend long, there will be workshops for kids: water rockets, Mars-Mobile, and a stamp hunt.
Even if we’re not going to live there, we’ll be able to observe the Sun through a telescope (which is highly active this weekend) on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. and on Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The full program for ASTROFEST 2026 is herePractical Information
Where? At the Montreal Planetarium, 4801 Avenue Pierre de Coubertin / Viau metro station, Bixi stations, and bus routes #34, 125, 136
When? May 30 and 31, 2026
Saturday, May 30, from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Sunday, May 31, from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m.
What? The ASTROFEST festival is free
