The Christa McAuliffe Center at Framingham State University will kick off a new season of its free, virtual planetarium events for families (ages 6+) with an online presentation, Mars Mania. On October 16 at 7PM, former NASA astronaut and current MIT professor Dr. Jeff Hoffman will talk about Mars — three days after Mars reaches opposition (shortest possible distance from earth). Dr. Hoffman will talk about the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover, currently on its way to Mars and carrying MOXIE, an instrument developed in collaboration with his department at MIT. View the presentation on Zoom (registration required) or the Christa McAuliffe YouTube channel.  (This live presentation is separate from the AstroNights LIVE: Exploring Mars presentation recorded in August.)