Mannheim Planetarium Reopens

After a three month modernization, the Mannheim Planetarium opened its doors again to the public on 1 October. ZEISS supplied the most important new feature: the digital system consisting of nine ZEISS VELVET projectors for fulldome projection. The computer cluster ZEISS powerdome takes care of the audiovisual presentations. The new fulldome projection system significantly expands the planetarium's range of programs. In addition to astronomy, the modern dome theater now features programs on other scientific and cultural topics as well as light entertainment. ZEISS was also responsible for another important part of the modernization, namely cleaning the projection dome.

"The installation of the Velvet System from ZEISS represents a quantum leap in design for the Mannheim Planetarium. State-of-the-art image and system quality and diverse projection possibilities in and in front of the dome inspire and amaze our visitors and the ambitious planetarium team. With this modernization, we are well-equipped to ensure our establishment's future," says Dr. Christian Theis, Head of the Mannheim Planetarium, with obvious delight when talking about the recently installed projection system.

"The modernization of the planetarium in Mannheim was a great challenge for everyone involved," says Dr. Martin Wiechmann, Head of the Planetarium Division at ZEISS. "We had only four months between signing the contract and reopening the planetarium. We are delighted that we were able to install and hand over the new technology to our happy customers in this short amount of time. Mannheim now has one of the most cutting edge planetariums in the world."

The projection system has a special feature: the digital projection is synchronously superimposed with the projection of the starlit sky using the ZEISS UNIVERSARIUM star projector that has been wowing audiences since 2002. Constellations and other educational content can be displayed together with the stars without compromising the splendor of the night sky. This is unique to ZEISS VELVET projectors.

Mannheim was one of the first cities to build a planetarium for its inhabitants and visitors. The planetarium was inaugurated in 1927 and used a ZEISS projector from Jena. The building was severely damaged in the second world war and was later torn down. The residents of Mannheim had to wait until 1984 to get a new planetarium. The building was designed by the architect Wilfried Beck Erlang and resembles the Stuttgart Planetarium, which Erlang also designed. At first a ZEISS Model VI projector created the stars on the dome, but in 2002 it was replaced with a UNIVERSARIUM Model IX. Since 1984, the planetarium has made a name for itself by developing many of its own shows.

With this new technology, the Mannheim Planetarium can now enrich its program offerings by also showing programs from other planetariums and other producers without any loss in quality. But the planetarium will not stop creating its own productions in the future. To make this possible, ZEISS has supplied multiple workstations featuring special software.