Selecting a Planetarium Projection Instrument
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The Hummel Planetarium Experience
THE HUMMEL PLANETARIUM | EXPERIENCE About us: The Arnim D. Hummel Planetarium has been nestled on the south side of Eastern Kentucky University’s campus since 1988. Since then, we have provided informal science education programs to EKU students, P-12 students, as well as the community. The main theme of our programs are seated in the fields of physics and astronomy, but recent programs have explored a myriad of STEM related topics through engaging hands on experiences. Who can visit and when? We are open to the public during select weekday afternoons and evenings (seasonal) as well as most Saturdays throughout the year. The public show schedule is pre-set, and the programs serve audiences from preschool age and up. We also welcome private reservations for groups of twenty or more Mondays through Fridays during regular business hours. Examples of groups who reserve a spot include school field trips, homeschool groups, church groups, summer camps, and many more. When booking a private reservation, your group may choose which show to watch, and request a customized star talk, if needed. What happens during a visit? Most visits to the Planetarium involve viewing a pre-recorded show which is immediately followed by a live Star Talk presentation inside of the theater. A planetarium theater is unique because the viewing area is rounded into the shape of a dome instead of a flat, two-dimensional screen. The third dimension enables you, the viewer, to become immersed in the scenes displayed on the dome. A list of the pre-recorded shows we offer is found on the next page. -
History of Astronomy Is a History of Receding Horizons.”
UNA Planetarium Image of the Month Newsletter Vol. 2. No. 9 Sept 15, 2010 We are planning to offer some exciting events this fall, including a return of the laser shows. Our Fall Laser Shows will feature images and music of Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd. The word laser is actually an acronym for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation”. We use many devices with lasers in them, from CD players to the mouse on your desk. What many people don’t know is that there are also natural lasers in space. The lasers in space often come from molecules (groups of one or more atoms sharing electrons); we call these masers. One of the more important one is the OH In 1987, astronomers observing from Chile observed a new star in the sky. This maser, formed by an oxygen and hydrogen exploding star, called a supernova, blazed away as the first supernova in several atom. The conditions in dense clouds that hundred years that was visible without a telescope. Ever since the Hubble Space form stars supply the requirements for telescope has been observing the ejecta of the explosion traveling through its host these masers. Radio astronomers study galaxy, called the Large Magellanic Cloud. This recent image of the exploding star these masers coming and going in these shows a 6-trillion mile diameter gas ring ejected from the star thousands of years dense clouds and even rotating around in before the explosion. Stars that will explode become unstable and lose mass into disks near their stars. This gives space, resulting in such rings. -
Sun, Moon, and Stars
Teacher's Guide for: Sun, Moon, and Stars OBJECTIVES: To introduce the planetarium and the night sky to the young learner. To determine what things we receive from the Sun. To see that the other stars are like our Sun, but farther away. To observe why the Moon appears to change shape and "visit" the Moon to see how it is different from the Earth. To observe the Earth from space and see that it really moves, despite the fact it looks like the Sun and stars are moving. This show conforms to the following Illinois state science standards: 12.F.1a, 12.F.1b, 12.F.2a, 12.F.2b, 12.F.2c, 12.F.3a, 12.F.3b. Next Generation Science Standards: 1.ESS1.1, 5PS2.1 BRIEF SHOW DESCRIPTION: "Sun, Moon, & Stars" is a live show for the youngest stargazers. We do a lot of pretending in the show, first by seeing what the Sun might look like both up close and from far away, and then taking an imaginary adventure to the Moon. We see the changing Moon in the sky and see how the stars in the sky make strange shapes when you connect them together. The planets can be inserted at the request of the instructor. PRE-VISIT ACTIVITIES/TOPICS FOR DISCUSSION: For the young ones, just being in the planetarium is a different experience they should "prepare" for. Discuss what it's like in a movie theater with the lights low. That's how we introduce the place. The screen goes all the way around though! Discuss the importance of the Sun. -
The Planetarium Environment by Kevin Scott the Experience of A
The Planetarium Environment by Kevin Scott The experience of a planetarium audience and staff is greatly affected by the basic physical infrastructure of a planetarium. Attention to detail in this realm is vital to a new planetarium construction project. Electrical Power Local building codes will provide a baseline for your particular power scheme and a licensed electrical engineer will handle much of the design work. Even so, it’s probably a good idea to be involved with the design process and familiarize yourself with the electrical requirements of your theater. Your interpretation of the space and production philosophy will dictate many aspects of the electrical layout and capacity. Every planetarium will have some form of star projector, and quite often there will be other unique equipment with special electrical requirements including laser systems, lighting instruments, projector lifts, and high concentrations of audio-visual equipment. Conduits and raceways for all of these devices will have to be mapped out. A spacious electrical room will make it easy to cleanly route power and control wiring throughout the planetarium. This master control area should be centrally located, perhaps beneath the theater to avoid any noise problems from equipment fans or lighting dimmers. A raised floor is an added luxury, but can make equipment installation and maintenance a breeze. Your electrical contractor will probably provide raceways for any automation control wiring. These control signals are mostly low-voltage and will need to be housed in raceways and conduits separate from power delivery. Keep in mind that you’ll want to have easy access to your low-voltage raceways for future equipment additions and upgrades. -
The Magic of the Atwood Sphere
The magic of the Atwood Sphere Exactly a century ago, on June Dr. Jean-Michel Faidit 5, 1913, a “celestial sphere demon- Astronomical Society of France stration” by Professor Wallace W. Montpellier, France Atwood thrilled the populace of [email protected] Chicago. This machine, built to ac- commodate a dozen spectators, took up a concept popular in the eigh- teenth century: that of turning stel- lariums. The impact was consider- able. It sparked the genesis of modern planetariums, leading 10 years lat- er to an invention by Bauersfeld, engineer of the Zeiss Company, the Deutsche Museum in Munich. Since ancient times, mankind has sought to represent the sky and the stars. Two trends emerged. First, stars and constellations were easy, especially drawn on maps or globes. This was the case, for example, in Egypt with the Zodiac of Dendera or in the Greco-Ro- man world with the statue of Atlas support- ing the sky, like that of the Farnese Atlas at the National Archaeological Museum of Na- ples. But things were more complicated when it came to include the sun, moon, planets, and their apparent motions. Ingenious mecha- nisms were developed early as the Antiky- thera mechanism, found at the bottom of the Aegean Sea in 1900 and currently an exhibi- tion until July at the Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers in Paris. During two millennia, the human mind and ingenuity worked constantly develop- ing and combining these two approaches us- ing a variety of media: astrolabes, quadrants, armillary spheres, astronomical clocks, co- pernican orreries and celestial globes, cul- minating with the famous Coronelli globes offered to Louis XIV. -
Liberty Science Center March 2018 Jan 31, 2019 |
Vol. 47, No. 1 March 2018 Journal of the International Planetarium Society A convergence at the Liberty Science Center Page 12 Executive Editor Sharon Shanks 484 Canterbury Ln Boardman, Ohio 44512 USA +1 330-783-9341 [email protected] March 2018 Webmaster Alan Gould Vol 47 No 1 Lawrence Hall of Science Planetarium University of California Articles Berkeley CA 94720-5200 USA [email protected] 8 Minutes of the 2017 IPS Council Meeting Rachel Thompson Advertising Coordinator Dale Smith 10 It’s easier than ever to join IPS (See Publications Committee on page 3) 11 New affiliate representatives and Vision2020 members 11 The international spread of our voices from the dome Membership 12 A convergence leads to excitement at the Liberty Individual: $65 one year; $100 two years Institutional: $250 first year; $125 annual renewal Science Center Rudith Jubin Library Subscriptions: $50 one year; $90 two years 18 Building and training an effective planetarium staff All amounts in US currency Tom Arnold Direct membership requests and changes of address to the Treasurer/Membership Chairman 24 Dome immerses world leaders in fight against pollution Daniel Chu Owen, Susan Murabana, Samyuktar Manikumar Printed Back Issues of Planetarian Kark Subba Rao, Kyle Doane IPS Back Publications Repository 26 Evaluating the impact of live presentations maintained by the Treasurer/Membership Chair (See contact information on next page) Ryan Wyatt, Akemi Mease 28 A musical planetarium play with an astronomical theme Final Deadlines Gloria McMillan March: January 21 30 Unusual need led to calibration innovation June: April 21 September: July 21 Alma Talbot December: October 21 32 How many people visit the world’s planetariums? Mark C. -
Startheater 3 Man
AGES 8+ 2009 ® Planetarium Projector with Astronomy Software Instruction Manual Table of Contents Discover the Universe! .......................................................................................................3 Your Own Planetarium ......................................................................................................3 What Is a Constellation? ....................................................................................................3 The Star Sphere ....................................................................................................................4 Assembly and Operation ..................................................................................................4 Installing Batteries .......................................................................................................4 Operating Your Planetarium ....................................................................................5 Setting the Date and Time ........................................................................................6 Care and Maintenance.......................................................................................................6 Meteors and Comets ..........................................................................................................7 The Constellations...............................................................................................................7 The Moving Sky..................................................................................................................10 -
The Seth Thomas Sidereal Clock, Now Located in the UH Institute for Astronomy Library
The Seth Thomas sidereal clock, now located in the UH Institute for Astronomy library. The large hand reads minutes, upper small hand, hours, and the lower small hand, seconds, of sidereal time, or time by the stars, as opposed to solar time. On the right is seen one of the two weights that drive the clock. They must be wound to the top once a week. A close up of the clock’s nameplate shows that it is clock no. 13. The University of Hawai`i Observatory, Kaimuki, 1910 to 1958, as seen in 1917 by E.H. Bryan, Jr. Soon after the turn of the century an astronomical event of major scientic as well as popular interest stirred the citizens of Honolulu: the predicted appearance of Halley’s Comet in 1910. By public subscription an observatory was built on Ocean View Drive in Kaimuki, which was then a suburb of Honolulu in the vicinity of Diamond Head. A civic group known as the Kaimuki Improvement Association donated the site, which oered an excellent view of the sky. A six-inch refractor manufactured by Queen and Company of Philadel- phia was placed in the observatory along with a very ne Seth Thomas sidereal clock and a three-inch meridian passage telescope. The observatory was operated by the edgling College of Hawai‘i, later to become the University of Hawai‘i. The public purpose of the Kaimuki Observatory was served and Halley’s Cometwas observed. But, unfortunately, the optics of the telescope were not good enough for serious scientic work. From “Origins of Astronomy in Hawai’i,” by Walter Steiger, Professor Emeritus, University of Hawai’i The Seth Thomas sidereal clock is now located in the UH Institute for Astronomy Library. -
PLANETARIUM SHOWS Field Trip Experiences in the Willard Smith Planetarium Allow Students to Explore Space Science Concepts in a Live, Interactive Presentation
FIELD TRIP EXPERIENCES PLANETARIUM SHOWS Field trip experiences in the Willard Smith Planetarium allow students to explore space science concepts in a live, interactive presentation. Ask about cusomizing the show to meet your education goals! Preschool All Stars Jupiter and its Moons Designed for our youngest learners, this show is an This show focuses on the mission of the Juno opportunity for children of all ages to be introduced spacecraft. Students learn about the solutions devised to the wonders of astronomy. Students will practice for challenges facing the mission and use observational pattern recognition while discovering their first skills to compare Jupiter’s moons to the earth. constellations. 15 minutes. Pre–K 30 minutes. Grades 6–12 The Sky Tonight Let’s Explore Light Focusing on naked-eye astronomy, The Sky Tonight In Let’s Explore Light, students learn about the nature shows students how the stars can be used for of light and the processes used by scientists who study navigation and how to find constellations and Planets. light. They use spectroscopy to identify the building We talk about current visible events and also look blocks of stars, and discover how spectroscopy has at some objects only visible through a telescope. helped us understand the nature of the universe. 30 minutes. Grades K–12 30 minutes. Grades 6–12 The Planets NEW! Earth Pole to Pole Fly through the Rings of Saturn and see the largest In this planetary science live presentation we explore volcano on Mars as we visit the planets in our solar the northern and southern polar regions of the planet system. -
The Missing Planet
66 Irénée Scalbert 3 London After the Green Belt Thomas Weaver 16 In Conversation with Hilla Becher Mathew Holmes 37 A Garden of Earthly Delights Tom Brooks 42 The Curious Case of Brian Housden Helen Thomas 54 Joseph Rykwert and the Use of History Mathew Aitchison 59 The Boyd Ultimatum H T Cadbury-Brown 68 In Conversation with Ludwig Mies van der Rohe Pedro Ignacio Alonso 81 Mountaineering Joshua Mardell 87 Far From the Madding Crowd Adrian Forty 100 Happy Ghost of a Possible City Ilaria Abbondandolo 108 ‘A Calligraphy I Have Invented Many Times Before’ Ryan Dillon 114 In Conversation with Moshe Safdie William Firebrace 126 The Missing Planet Laurent Stalder 145 No Limits to Growth Mark Campbell 153 Blood Simple 156 Contributors 66 aa Files The contents of aa Files are derived from the activities Architectural Association of the Architectural Association School of Architecture. 36 Bedford Square Founded in 1847, the aa is the uk’s only independent London wc1b 3es school of architecture, offering undergraduate, t +44 (0)20 7887 4000 postgraduate and research degrees in architecture and f +44 (0)20 7414 0782 related fields. In addition, the Architectural Association aaschool.ac.uk is an international membership organisation, open to anyone with an interest in architecture. Publisher The Architectural Association For Further Information Visit aaschool.ac.uk Editorial Board or contact the Admissions Office Mark Cousins aa School of Architecture George L Legendre 36 Bedford Square Joanna Merwood-Salisbury London wc1b 3es Irénée Scalbert Brett -
Using Virtual Reconstructions in a Planetarium for Demonstrations in Archaeo-Astronomy
Central European Multimedia and Virtual Reality Conference (2006) C. Sik Lányi, B. Oláh (Editors) Using Virtual Reconstructions in a Planetarium for Demonstrations in Archaeo-Astronomy Georg Zotti, Alexander Wilkie and Werner Purgathofer Institute of Computer Graphics & Algorithms, TU Wien, Austria Abstract In the last decades, archaeologists in central Europe have found traces of enigmatic neolithic circular building structures buried in the soil. Recent studies indicate that the orientation of many of their doorways may have been chosen with an astronomical background in mind. This paper explains the use of virtual reconstructions of these buildings from archaeological data, in combination with a simulation of the sky of that time in a Planetarium, to present the astronomical findings to the public. Categories and Subject Descriptors (according to ACM CCS): I.3.7 [Three-Dimensional Graphics and Realism]: Virtual Reality; I.3.8 [Applications]: 1. Introduction measure the minute deviations of the Earth’s natural mag- netic field caused by the different qualities of soil which to- Archaeological evidence shows the connection of ancient day fill the ditches: a set of very sensitive magnetometers is cultures to annually repeating celestial events. In many old mounted on a hand-moved cart, and the cart is moved over cultures, temple axes were typically aligned along cardi- the soil in parallel lines, providing a “subsurface scan” of nal directions, with the Pyramids in Egypt as most popu- the terrain. According to Radio-Carbon (14C) dating of ex- lar and best studied example. Another kind of alignment is cavated bone material, all KGAs have been erected in the that towards solstitial risings and settings of the sun; Stone- short time span between 4800 and 4500 B.C. -
Progress in Rendering and Modeling for Digital Planetariums
EUROGRAPHICS 2010/ M. Cooper and K. Pulli Areas Paper Progress in Rendering and Modeling for Digital Planetariums M. Magnor1,2† and P. Sen2 and J. Kniss2 and E.Angel2 and S. Wenger1 1 TU Braunschweig, Germany 2 University of New Mexico, USA Abstract Contemporary challenges in the production of digital planetarium shows include real-time rendering realism as well as the creation of authentic content. While interactive, live performance is a standard feature of professional digital-dome planetarium software today, support for physically correct rendering of astrophysical phenomena is still often limited. Similarly, the tools currently available for planetarium show production do not offer much assistance towards creating scientifically accurate models of astronomical objects. Our paper presents recent results from computer graphics research, offering solutions to contemporary challenges in digital planetarium rendering and modeling. Incorporating these algorithms into the next generation of dome display software and production tools will help advance digital planetariums toward make full use of their potential. Categories and Subject Descriptors (according to ACM CCS): I.3.3 [Computer Graphics]: Picture/Image Generation—Viewing algorithms I.3.5 [Computer Graphics]: Computational Geometry and Object Modeling— Physically based modeling I.3.8 [Computer Graphics]: Applications—Digital Planetariums J.2 [Computer Appli- cations]: Physical Sciences and Engineering—Astronomy 1. Introduction A challenging task for digital fulldome planetariums is to decide on how to present scientific content in the vi- While researchers are currently exploring many innovative sually most intuitive way, given the innumerable possibil- new uses for digital domes, the main application of public ities offered by digital dome projection.