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Construction Details from the DVHS Planetarium

A narrative story about the dome's construction was published on the web site Low End Mac and can be read here. The dome is a 15' fiberglass dome built tilted forward with a custom designed projector stand.

Photo Album showing how it was built

The photo below shows the DVHS library storage room on the 2nd floor prior to our beginning construction of the planetarium. Our principal, Mary Vinciguerra, suggested removing these books from the second floor and putting them in storage rooms on the first floor. This shows how the room appeared May 2004.
This is the entrance to the planetarium on the second floor.
These photos show the room being painted flat black to reduce reflected light when the planetarium is in use. The room was painted in September 2004. This is how the room looked after the shelves were removed. The room behind the windows is the planetarium office.
Painting began by getting the edges and trim coated in flat black.
This was taken after the first coat of paint.
When completed, it will be able to present traditional and digital planetarium shows in an immersive panoramic environment, including a traditional "star ball" projector, 180-degree panoramic digital projector, and traditional slides and computer projection display including DVD and video projection. The 15' Astro-Tec dome will seat approximately 20-25 adults in chairs or 35 students sitting on the floor. This photo shows the assembled bottom support frame for the projection dome.	Astro-Tec designed a custom-built underframe for the dome based on our specifications for the room. The dome is 15 feet in diameter which makes the base an ellipse with a major axis of 15 feet. The dome is tilted to allow some people to sit outside of the dome and to allow for the maximum amount of floor space in the room after installation. The dome is colored off-white to reduce glare from the projectors.
The dome is tilted to allow more people to see the show and to allow entry to the dome without crawling through an opening as with an inflatable dome. The diagram at right shows the rough configuration of the dome. This was our original design sketch when planning the dome's structure.
More detailed dome drawing by Astro-Tec to help MMI design the projector base properly. This one gives dimensions and shows the projector at the center of the dome's hemisphere, where it belongs. Click on the picture for a larger view.
This photo shows Astro-Tec performing the test fit of the dome parts at the factory. They disassembled the dome and sent it to DVHS for reassembly. It's a real thing! The dome was installed in Fall 2004.
The planetarium dome parts arrive by Fedex truck on October 1, 2004.
The dome is under construction. Our Astro-Tec representative bolts two of the eight segments together.
The dome is winched to the ceiling so the frame can be assembled underneath.
The supporting frame is bolted to the dome and securely attached to the floor. The door is over six feet tall and wide enough to accommodate a wheelchair if necessary.
This is the appearance of the interior before it was painted. The pieces have been bolted together and caulked and the roof cap is not yet in place.
Projector: Hal 1200a 180x145 degree digital projector by Elumenati,llc.	This is a digital projector with a special lens. This projector defined the need for the off-white projection surface. We will be able to project any picture which can be displayed on a computer screen. We did a test on September 16, 2004 in our portable planetarium dome. The digital system works great!!
Star Projector: R.S. Automation Cosmos, of Sorbiers, France and supplied by MMI Corporation.	MMI's traditional star ball projector is manufactured in France and includes a remote control, planet projectors, and other features. It is the most expensive component of the planetarium. Our stand has been received, installed, and it works great!
Computer: Mac OS X running on a Power Mac G5 tower	This is the computer which will drive the sound system, DVD player, and digital projectors for multimedia presentaitons.
Planetarium Software: Stellarium	Our version of Stellarium was altered by a volunteer to the open-source project to allow us to install it in Mac OS X and use it with our planetarium projector.
Nearly finished This is the planetarium nearly finished. The only thing missing is the projector stand for the digital projector.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jeff Adkins, Director
astronomyteacher@mac.com

Cheryl Domenichelli, Assistant Director
cheryldomenichelli@antioch.k12.ca.us

4700 Lone Tree Way
Antioch, CA 94531

The ESPACE Academy is sponsored in part by a grant from the California Department of Education's Specialized Secondary Program.