Post by Ron Walker on Jan 31, 2023 12:18:38 GMT -7
For what it's worth department.
I am going to go back some fifteen years and resurrect a post I made as it is easier than trying to generate a new introductory post. As I get older I find it a lot harder to put down on paper what my mind is thinking at least in a coherent manner. My interest in planetariums hasn't changed much so it's still fairly accurate and I will try and update when needed.
If you had told me a year ago that I would be writing a column on planetariums, I would have smiled politely and re-filled your glass with whatever you were drinking, knowing that my host duties were being fulfilled admirably. If you had told me a year ago that I would be building a domed observatory as well as a planetarium, I would have cut you off, grabbed your keys, and called a cab, as you certainly should not be allowed out on the street alone. As fate would have it, both of these "wish list" items are becoming realities.
This past year has been a whirlwind of activity on this front. It has seen not only a long lost passion for astronomy re-ignited, but charter memberships in two organizations that I plan to continue with until I am no longer vertical. A new local organization, the "Desert Foothills Astronomy Club" www.dfacaz.org/ which formed just when I was starting to look for one, and this forum "astroskies" which began just a few short months ago. Both of these organizations geared toward the study and love of astronomy that only an amateur group can generate. (UPDATE: DFAC went under and "Astroskies" has moved on as well).
These groups spend their nights wondering around the awe and mystery of the night sky. A sky that moves slowly forward, revealing its secrets only to those with the patience to look, and in looking, to see. In this world of instant everything, looking and seeing are becoming a lost art. But it is this instant everything world that also brings those "wonder’s" among us together through forums such as "astroskies".
But what of planetariums? How do they fit into the grand scheme of things? Why would anyone want one? Those of us who love living under our own fabricated sky are a strange bunch indeed. In the newsletter of the "Home Planetarium Association" planetariumsathome.com Bob Myler put it this way, "How did we all get to be this weird? Playing around in the dark, experimenting with little lights and all? Was there something lacking in our upbringing, or diet? Heck, out of 300 million Americans, there are probably less then 300 of us that get a buzz out of this sort of thing."
Perhaps it is a "god" syndrome. Wanting to control that mysterious night sky in our own time? I think not. I think there are a lot more of us out there then one might think. Just peruse the welcome thread in the planetarium forum on this site. More often then not, folks remember visits to a planetarium with fond memories. Perhaps it was one such visit that sparked that interest in astronomy. I know that’s how I started. But perhaps there was something in my diet that made me look again at that beautiful machine in the center of the room and wonder about it.
There are people that will spend copious amounts of money and time installing a new float on their carburetor. (Do they still have carburetors?) [Fortunately, this does not interest me.] There are people that will spend money and time installing new eyepieces on their telescopes. [Unfortunately, this does interest me.] And there are the few of us who "play around in the dark, experimenting with little lights and all."
I invite you to join us. The more technical, or simple banter, in the planetarium forum on this site. This column for the more esoteric. Either place might "hook" you. Once "hooked" you will open a new vista most only dream about. Little lights on the ceiling that open one up to daydreaming, daydreaming about the awe and mystery of the night sky.
I’m not at all sure which direction this dialog will take us. If you follow along on this odyssey, we will try and make it entertaining and fun. Just remember that I was "hooked" at an early age. But how could I not be "hooked"? Walking into a strange round room and seeing a Zeiss Mark II planetarium projector.
Ron
I am going to go back some fifteen years and resurrect a post I made as it is easier than trying to generate a new introductory post. As I get older I find it a lot harder to put down on paper what my mind is thinking at least in a coherent manner. My interest in planetariums hasn't changed much so it's still fairly accurate and I will try and update when needed.
If you had told me a year ago that I would be writing a column on planetariums, I would have smiled politely and re-filled your glass with whatever you were drinking, knowing that my host duties were being fulfilled admirably. If you had told me a year ago that I would be building a domed observatory as well as a planetarium, I would have cut you off, grabbed your keys, and called a cab, as you certainly should not be allowed out on the street alone. As fate would have it, both of these "wish list" items are becoming realities.
This past year has been a whirlwind of activity on this front. It has seen not only a long lost passion for astronomy re-ignited, but charter memberships in two organizations that I plan to continue with until I am no longer vertical. A new local organization, the "Desert Foothills Astronomy Club" www.dfacaz.org/ which formed just when I was starting to look for one, and this forum "astroskies" which began just a few short months ago. Both of these organizations geared toward the study and love of astronomy that only an amateur group can generate. (UPDATE: DFAC went under and "Astroskies" has moved on as well).
These groups spend their nights wondering around the awe and mystery of the night sky. A sky that moves slowly forward, revealing its secrets only to those with the patience to look, and in looking, to see. In this world of instant everything, looking and seeing are becoming a lost art. But it is this instant everything world that also brings those "wonder’s" among us together through forums such as "astroskies".
But what of planetariums? How do they fit into the grand scheme of things? Why would anyone want one? Those of us who love living under our own fabricated sky are a strange bunch indeed. In the newsletter of the "Home Planetarium Association" planetariumsathome.com Bob Myler put it this way, "How did we all get to be this weird? Playing around in the dark, experimenting with little lights and all? Was there something lacking in our upbringing, or diet? Heck, out of 300 million Americans, there are probably less then 300 of us that get a buzz out of this sort of thing."
Perhaps it is a "god" syndrome. Wanting to control that mysterious night sky in our own time? I think not. I think there are a lot more of us out there then one might think. Just peruse the welcome thread in the planetarium forum on this site. More often then not, folks remember visits to a planetarium with fond memories. Perhaps it was one such visit that sparked that interest in astronomy. I know that’s how I started. But perhaps there was something in my diet that made me look again at that beautiful machine in the center of the room and wonder about it.
There are people that will spend copious amounts of money and time installing a new float on their carburetor. (Do they still have carburetors?) [Fortunately, this does not interest me.] There are people that will spend money and time installing new eyepieces on their telescopes. [Unfortunately, this does interest me.] And there are the few of us who "play around in the dark, experimenting with little lights and all."
I invite you to join us. The more technical, or simple banter, in the planetarium forum on this site. This column for the more esoteric. Either place might "hook" you. Once "hooked" you will open a new vista most only dream about. Little lights on the ceiling that open one up to daydreaming, daydreaming about the awe and mystery of the night sky.
I’m not at all sure which direction this dialog will take us. If you follow along on this odyssey, we will try and make it entertaining and fun. Just remember that I was "hooked" at an early age. But how could I not be "hooked"? Walking into a strange round room and seeing a Zeiss Mark II planetarium projector.
Ron
