How cosmic collisions shaped life on Earth.

• Position: Outer Space

"Cosmic Collisions" features stunning images from space and breathtaking visualizations based on cutting-edge scientific data--many seen for the first time--revealing the explosive encounters that shaped our solar system, changed the course of life on Earth, and continue to transform our galaxy and universe. An engrossing, immersive theater experience created by visualization and production experts with the cooperation of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and more than 25 leading scientists from the U.S. and abroad, this space show focuses on the full range of collisions, from catastrophic planetary impacts and the merging of massive galaxies to the continual explosions occurring in the center of the sun and the incessant barrage of small ionized particles in the solar wind ricocheting off Earth's magnetic field that creates "space weather."

"Unique observations from space provide a revolutionary view of a dynamic cosmos," explains Richard Fisher, director of NASA's Heliophysics Division. "From sun to Earth and moon and to the stars and galaxies beyond, the accurate visualizations in 'Cosmic Collisions' show these spectacles unfold in a concrete way that viewers have never before experienced."

Collisions are commonplace occurrences in space and currently are understood by scientists as a key mechanism in the evolution of the universe. They are the spectacular and inevitable result of gravity pulling together objects such as planets, stars, and galaxies, which are in constant motion. "Collisions, whether they are infinitesimal or massive, drive the evolution of cosmic objects in much the same way as natural selection or the collision of energetic particles with DNA drives the evolution of species," notes Michael M. Shara, curator of the show.

"Cosmic Collisions" re-creates tremendous encounters that usually are invisible to us, either because...