Newsletter

July 2010 VELVET enchants audiences at the Bochum Planetarium Since May 5th, 2010, the „New Bochum Planetarium“ has been open again. At the beginning of the year, workmen and technicians moved into the 20m dome theater to give the auditorium a new, almost magic look and to install VELVET. The new projection system turns the dome into a "fulldome" screen, whose absolutely black background lends projected contents unrivalled brilliance and contrast. Bochum's is the first large-dome planetarium to feature VELVET projectors. These entirely novel, unprecedented sky openers make the dome a stage for the entire universe with its fascinating beauty and breathtaking dynamics. Since the opening day, seven new shows have debuted. After Wolfsburg, Bochum is the second planetarium to use the high-contrast projectors, an in-house design of Carl Zeiss. The planetarium of the Wilhelm Foerster Observatory in Berlin will follow in the late summer.

July 2010 Archive Newsletter abonnieren Print More Information powerdome®VELVET powerdome® SKYMASTER ZKP 4 Fulldome-Shows

Dome master from the show “Exploring the Universe”. New graphical user interface for powerdome®Encoder The powerdome MPEG Encoder converts a sequence of individual images („dome masters“) into videos, which powerdome can play as fulldome videos in real time. After complete revision, the tool now has a user-friendly graphic interface that facilitates the creation of dome videos. The program automatically determines the number of available processor cores and distributes the dome masters accordingly. Once encoded, the partial videos are assembled automatically. The procedure considerably cuts the computing time. SKYMASTER ZKP 4. SKYMASTER ZKP 4 for planetarium in Japan The Munakata Yurikkuso Planetarium is replacing its old Goto GX-AT projector with a Carl Zeiss SKYMASTER ZKP 4 machine. Munakata, a place of 95,000 inhabitants, is situated on Kyūshū, Japan's third largest island. The 12m-dome planetarium is part of a popular culture and sports center, which also comprises a library, a movie theater, a swimming pool and other leisure facilities. After comprehensive rehab, the planetarium will seat an audience of 82 for a tour of the universe. Award winners of the 4th FullDome Festival at the Zeiss-Planetarium in Jena. 4th FullDome Festival attracted 1000-plus visitors This must have been the world's biggest show marathon. On three evenings early in May, the festival presented no fewer than 26 fulldome shows of all categories, from the high-caliber educational program to experimental video art. With contributions from 12 countries – from Australia to India and China, from Europe to the USA – it was more international than any of its predecessors. The show producers took home four FullDome Awards and five Honorable Mentions. The climax again was the Students' Night of dome-projected short films. Students from Germany, China and the USA presented new clips of high artistic quality. The new productions are characterized by barrier-free thinking creativity. This year again, Carl Zeiss awarded three prizes including prize moneys of 500 Euro each. “Darwin and his Fabulous Orchids”. Darwin and his Fabulous Orchids gets design award A production of the Kiel University of Applied Science (Media Dome) and the University of Kiel (Botanical Garden), masterminded by Ralph Heinsohn of Tilt Design Studio Hamburg, this new orchid show has been awarded the coveted „IF communication design award“ 2010 against 1686 other entrants from 26 countries. A great success for a fulldome show! Carl Zeiss congratulates the entire team. The orchid show follows Darwin's journey around the globe and looks into his observations of orchids, which helped him formulate his theory of evolution. A highly topical non-astronomical subject for any planetarium. Distributed by Carl Zeiss. Wanted: Software developer To reinforce its team of the Planetarium Business Unit, Carl Zeiss offers the position of a software developer. Job offer (in German language) Back to top