Why
is it called a planetarium?
Although star maps have been around for thousands of years,
recreating the motion of the planets is much harder because
unlike the stars, the planets move relative to each other.
Moreover, each combination of planetary positions is unique
and will never be exactly repeated.
It wasn't until the 1920s
that it was possible to recreate the position of the planets
for any given date. Because it was so hard to display the
positions of the planets accurately, the first machine able
to do so was called a 'planetarium'.
Over
time, the term planetarium has come to include the entire
domed theatre and all of the projection systems within it,
including the star projectors that were the original 'planetariums'.
The
Spitz System 512 Planetarium Projector
The night sky is brought to life inside the planetarium’s
30-foot dome by the Spitz System 512 Projector. Located
at the center of the theater, the projector can accurately
and precisely reproduce the night sky as seen from anywhere
on Earth thousands of years in the past OR future. Because
daily and annual motions of the Earth as well as latitude
changes can be exactly replicated by the projector, the
Planetarium is able to serve as a "time machine",
capable of taking the most casual observer on a celestial
adventure into the past or the future, as well as providing
a view of the sky from anywhere in the world. When the room
lights are darkened, the dome is transformed into an amazingly
realistic simulation of the starry sky. The Spitz 512 is
capable of projecting the sun, moon, the 5 naked-eye planets,
and over 2,500 stars on the domed ceiling with accuracy
in brightness and color. The result is a simulation of the
nighttime sky that can be seen day or night — cloudy
or clear.
Still
Images
Sitting around the rim of the dome are 18 slide projectors.
These slide projectors are able to project high-resolution
color images across the entire surface of the planetarium
dome. This allows the audience to be fully immersed in the
'world' created by the planetarium show. An additional slide
projector is fitted with zoom lenses and slew mirrors, and
allow images of moons and spacecraft to travel across the
dome.
Moving
Pictures
The duPont Planetarium has impressive video capabilities
with the Barco Digital Projector able to show video across
nearly half of the planetarium dome. Colorful animations
are used to illustrate astronomical principles and to enliven
the engaging characters that lead us through the shows.
Sound
The duPont Planetarium has been fitted with stereo surround
sound. An array of 4 JBL studio monitors is suspended above
the dome complemented by a large array of sub-woofers built
into the walls of the theatre.
Special
Effects
The planetarium also has special effects projectors to produce:
• sunrise / sunset / color change of the dome
• bolides (fireball meteors)
• aurora / northern lights
• lightning, snow and clouds
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