Adler Planetarium boss to retire

Adler Planetarium President Paul Knappenberger Jr. is about to lift off to his next adventure – retirement.

Knappenberger, 69, is stepping down after the completion of a fund-raising campaign that aimed to raise $35 million but actually raised more – $54 million. Attendance is up 14 percent over 2011 following the opening of the Grainger Sky Theater, a $15 million theater said to be among the most advanced in the world.

“It’s the perfect time,” Knappenberger said. “Everything is going well for the Adler.”

Knappenberger was named Adler’s eighth president in 1991. Unable to be an astronaut because he exceeded NASA’s height requirement, he received a doctorate in astronomy from the University of Virginia. In 1968, he kicked off his career at an Atlanta science center where he planned to continue his research.

Hired by the Adler in 1991, he said starting the planetarium’s research program was a career highlight because it allows Adler’s team of Ph.D.’s to directly translate their work into the planetarium’s educational program.

“It just feels good to work with Chicago Public Schools and the park district to reach out to people who otherwise wouldn’t have the opportunity to learn anything at all about the universe,” he said.

He oversaw the building of the $40 million Sky Pavilion, which opened in 1999 and doubled the museum’s exhibition space. His successor, expected to be appointed by the end of the year, will lead a new fund-raising campaign to help install the shuttle simulator that NASA awarded to Adler in 2011.