The Santa Monica College John Drescher Planetarium will present two special feature shows in February.

The Kepler Mission & the Search for Earthlike Planets, on Friday, Feb. 6, will take a closer look at the upcoming launch of the Kepler spacecraft, designed to survey more than 100,000 nearby stars, which could open the floodgates of discovery of Earthlike planets in our stellar neighborhood.

Special Observing Event: Gems of the Winter Sky, on two Fridays, Feb. 20 and 27, will take a look at the Pleiades star cluster at a prime time when the moon's glare is absent. The great Orion Nebula, red giant star Betelgeuse and other wonders of the winter sky will be observed through a selection of telescopes. Images will be shown if clouds intervene.The feature shows are at 8 p.m., and are preceded by "The Night Sky Show" at 7 p.m., which re-creates the night sky and provides the latest information on space exploration.

The John Drescher Planetarium, which features the Digistar projection system, is located on the second floor of Drescher Hall, 1900 Pico Blvd.

The planetarium will be closed Feb. 13. Tickets are $5 each or $9 for the "double bill," with discounts for children and senior citizens. For information, call (310) 434-4223 or (310) 434-3000. CONTACT: Public Information Officer Bruce Smith (310) 434-4209 www.smc.edu/planetarium