Source: CNET.com
If you have never been before, I highly recommend a visit. The Hayden Planetarium is a phenomenal space science outreach facility that has inspired and educated millions of visitors from all over the world for generations. The original Hayden Planetarium was built in 1935. It’s stated mission was to give the public
a more lively and sincere appreciation of the magnitude of the universe…and for the wonderful things which are daily occurring in the universe.
In 2000, the Hayden Planetarium was renovated as part of the new Rose Science Center in New York City.
From my own experience, the Hayden Planetarium reproduces the night sky with a level of clarity and detail unlike anything I’ve ever witnessed before (second only to a few starry nights I’ve spent atop the Appalachian Mountains in Virginia). Space shows are magnificent on its spherical dome, and its physical and technological grandeur provides a powerful glimpse into the Cosmos.
Many of the space shows at planetariums around the country and the world have been produced in-house at the American Museum of Natural History, home of the Hayden Planetarium. Journey to the Stars, produced by the American Museum of Natural History, is a popular program being shown at full-dome digital planetariums today.
The goal of Friends of Arlington’s David M. Brown Planetarium is to raise funds to update the slide projector-based David M. Brown Planetarium to a full-dome digital planetarium like the Hayden Planetarium. Very few companies still produce shows for slide projector-based systems; however, digital shows have boomed in production. Upgrading the David M. Brown Planetarium will make available the vast library of digital space shows being shown at planetariums around the country and world.
So, brew a cup of tea or coffee, sit back, and flip through this cool little photo gallery CNET has put together. And next time you’re in the Big Apple, be sure to check out the Hayden Planetarium: http://bit.ly/hayden-planetarium.
Raphael Perrino
“Friends of the Planetarium”
save.the.planetarium@gmail.com
