The Cupertino Courier

Cover Story

Photograph by Jacqueline Ramseyer

Play group friends (from left) Kate Mason, Peter Pelkey, Nicholas Ybarra and CF Roey are ready for takeoff just before the start of a show at the planetarium at De Anza College. The department plans many programs for families and children, thinking this is one way to get young people interested in the sciences.

Star Struck

The planetarium at De Anza College is going through major renovation

By ANNE WARD ERNST

It was March when the Planetarium at De Anza College unceremoniously tossed Earth into a trash bin. The rotating planetary display that once hung at the aging planetarium will be joined by more astronomical pieces in the months to come while the planetarium goes through renovation.

The planetarium doors closed to the public on March 17. When the facility reopens next February, the list of new items will include a star projector, seats and seating arrangement, bathrooms, dome and lighting, plus upgrades in the building's electrical and mechanical infrastructure.

At first blush the new seats and seating arrangement might appear the most visible change with the lights on, but the greatest enhancement will shine when the lights dim.

A new Konica Minolta Infinium S star projector, the first of its kind installed in a planetarium in the United States, will replace the old Minolta MS-15 star projector. With it comes more vivid planet and star-gazing capability.

"The star field is going to be more realistic. It's a state-of-the-art star projector that will project very bright and very tiny star-like images," says Karl von Ahnen, technical director.

High-resolution optical fiber projection, a long-life lamp, high-speed motion and more sophisticated computer technology are just some of the upgrades of the Infinium S. Through 250,000 points of light, images such as the Milky Way will appear brilliant as they are projected on the 50-foot dome overhead, while other projection enhancements will bring a 3-D effect to viewers.

State funds of $1 million covered most of the cost of the projector, which has a $1.8 million street value, according to Caron Blinick, dean of community education. Revenues from the planetarium's shows, programs and even the renting of the facilities provided the remaining funds. Blinick declined to reveal the actual purchase price of the Infinium S, which is somewhere between $1 million and $1.8 million.

She says because of a long-standing relationship between the planetarium and Konica Minolta, the company was "very generous" and gave the low bid. In return for the discount on the new projector, the company will use the planetarium for client demonstrations. Headquartered in Japan, with an office in New Jersey, the company donated the planetarium's original star projector in 1969.

More compact than its predecessor, the new projector takes up less room. That coupled with fewer seats--down to 145 from 170--and the new uni-directional seating arrangement will give the facility more flexibility in program and classroom offerings.

The old seating arrangement, with seats placed concentrically under the round dome, had its advantages, von Ahnen says.

"I really like the concentric seating. It makes it feel much different than going to the movies, which is good. It's kind of like sitting around the bonfire. It's a nice feel in that respect. It is more intimate, maybe," he says.

But the circular style seating has disadvantages. There is the need for two video projectors to simultaneously cast duplicate images on two sides of the dome so everyone can see. Without that, people would have to turn around to see what is being projected behind them. But with the new uni-directional seating--considered more modern in planetariums--people will face the same direction.

The new configuration will also work better for astronomy classes.

Since 1969 more than a million people have vicariously traveled galaxies through the old projector. Each year more than 25,000 preschool through 12th-grade students from 445 schools throughout Santa Clara County visit the planetarium on field trips or for other educational programs. Other public programs such as the Friday and Saturday night laser light shows--set to popular music by such bands as the Beatles and Pink Floyd--and family astronomy nights bring an additional 8,000 visitors each year.

The planetarium is also rented for corporate or private parties, has been the venue for a funeral and was once considered for a Star Trek-themed wedding.

Such personal affairs attach a sense of sentimentality to the facility, and for the staff there is nostalgia, too--for the projector.

Blinick says they have considered finding the MS-15 a "new home." It's still functional and useful, he says.

"The machine (MS-15) we have now does a wonderful job. It is still fantastic," von Ahnen says. He's worked at the planetarium for the better part of 15 years and says he will miss it.

The ideal retirement for the MS-15 would be to see it on display in a new lobby at the planetarium. Blinick, von Ahnen and other staff members would love to have a bright, fresh entry area where they could put out other scientific displays, they say, but they need a benefactor. Bond Measure E, which passed in 1999, will cover some of the infrastructure refurbishment, but not a new lobby.

New bathrooms--currently accessed by exiting the planetarium and walking around to the side of the building--will for the first time be accessible through the old lobby.

The self-supporting operation of the planetarium has raised more than $2.4 million on its own for the renovation, but its staff wants more--an additional $1.4 million to help reach goals of installing all new lighting, sound, lobby exhibits, enhancements and artwork, a DVD player and recorder, tables and chairs, retail racks for the gift shop and security items.

Blinick has visited hundreds of planetariums and has a vision of making this one world-class. Funding opportunities exist for naming rights of just about any room of the planetarium, including rooms that don't yet exist--such as a proposed teachers' training facility that would help educate the educators--but is still a dream to the staff.

Minolta earned the naming rights for the entire building 37 years ago when it donated the projector, but the name will change with the renovations. Von Ahnen says it is customary for planetariums to be named for a benefactor, and he looks forward to seeing a new name. He considers the current facility name, Planetarium at De Anza College, rather plain, he says.

For a cool $2.5 million, though, a donor can name the building after a revered family member, pampered pet or favorite high-tech company. The theater name is up for grabs too--for $850,000. That money will buy a SuperMediaglobe, high-resolution, digital immersive projection system. Von Ahnen says that system, combined with the Infinium S, could be programmed to take audiences to new levels--the depths of the sea, through the earth and into the outer reaches of the universe.

All that would be much better viewed on a seamless dome, Blinick says. It's not in the budget now, but installing the seamless covering of the dome during the renovation would be easier now than later.

Earlier works better in education, too, Blinick says. Studies show getting people interested in the sciences and math is best achieved at young ages, which is why so many of the planetarium's programs revolve around youth, and why the staff hopes to develop more once the facility reopens.

In the fall the planetarium takes another giant step toward that goal. A fundraising event called "A Night of Magic" will be held on Oct. 28. Touted as "a party out of this world," the evening will feature wine and beer tasting, silent and live auctions, a gourmet dinner, laser show and live music. And dancing under the stars.

For more information about the planetarium or donating, go to www.planetarium.deanza.edu. For more information about "A Night of Magic," visit www.nightofmagic.org.