blog




  • Essay / Importance of Planetariums - 1765

    In 2006, Government Science and Technology Council. of Uttar Pradesh inaugurated the Veer Bahadur Singh Planetarium, a 17.5 m dome equipped with a Digistar 3 projector from Evans & Sutherland, USA. In 2007, the NCSM, on behalf of the Government's Science and Technology Council. of Haryana established the Kalpana Chawla Memorial Planetarium in Kurukshetra. The 12m dome planetarium features a Spitz 1024 projector as well as the SciDome HB digital system. The Yashwantrao Chavan Planetarium, a 10 m dome planetarium with a Digistar 3 projector, was opened in Nashik in 2007. Puspa Gujral Science City in Kapurthala has also installed Digistar 3 with Goto's Astrovision Ultra 70 in its dome space theater 23 m in 2008. Three planetariums were opened in 2009. NCSM had installed a 5 m fiberglass dome planetarium at the Guwahati Regional Science Centre, where a Hal-X2 Omnifocus projector manufactured by The Elumenati, USA, was used. The Asha Kiran Planetarium established by the Hukkeri family in Belgaum has a 12m dome with a spherical mirror system from Discovery Dome, USA. In 2009, the Surat Municipal Corporation opened a 14.3 m dome planetarium at the Surat Science Centre, using the Digistar 3 projection system. In 2010, the NCSM opened 8 million meter dome planetariums in its three units: the North Bengal Science Centre, Siliguri; District Science Centre, Gulbarga; and District Science Centre, Tirunelveli. While the Siliguri planetarium has a Digistar 3 system, two other centers have Full Dome SX3-MK II systems from Immersive Display, UK. The NCSM District Science Center in Dharampur also installed an SX3-MK II full dome system in an 8m dome planetarium in 2011. In the same year, the Union Territory Department of Science and Technology of Lakshadweep opened a 10m dome planetarium in Kavaratti using a Megastar-IIB Star Ball from Ohira Tech. Ltd., Japan, with SkySkan's Definity Theater, USA. Two planetariums were established in 2012. Government Science and Technology Council.