Saturday, December 30, 2006

I see stars


The Adler Planetarium and Astronomy Museum in Chicago, Illinois is the only one to feature two state-of-the-art planetariums. It was the first and oldest one built in the western hemisphere. Copernicus would be pleased. As an avid stargazer, I couldn't get enough.
Perched over Lake Michigan, Adler offers wonderful shows, historic astronomical instruments and modern space exploration exhibits. I really enjoyed the Stars of the Pharoahs Show. It was in the starider theater and was a combination of IMax style flyover video combined with classic Planetarium star fields projected 360 degrees around plush seats that tilted back just the right amount.
The history of Astronomy is really brought to life with a great collection of antique instruments for studying the sky including the Atwood Sphere, a planetarium which is 15 feet in diameter you step inside to see a representation of the night sky. Very cool.
If you ever gaze up at the night sky like I do, a trip to Adler Planetarium and Astronomy Museum is a real treat!

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