Ostrava Planetarium opens to the public after renovation

Ostrava - After a three-year reconstruction, the Ostrava Planetarium was ceremoniously opened today, which is part of the VŠB - Technical University of Ostrava. From Sunday at 14:00, it will offer the public a number of new features. Besides areas with new exhibitions, the planetarium will allow quality projection viewing. Its renovation cost nearly 150 million crowns, said university spokesperson Klára Janoušková to ČTK.
    "The planetarium remains the core of the building, but our aim will be for visitors to focus not only on its programs. The offer has greatly expanded. They can try out various experiments in the Experimentarium, learn a host of interesting information from various natural science fields on large display panels and interactive screens, watch documentaries in the cinema hall, view art exhibitions in the Mira gallery, conduct research in the Research Lab, or take photos of observed astronomical objects during evening observations," said Tomáš Gráf, head of the expert team, about the planned novelties.
    University rector Ivo Vondrák recalled that the planetarium's goal is also to offer activities that will bring the natural sciences closer to children in a playful and engaging way. "Visitors can also look forward to completely new popular science programs that they won't find anywhere else," Vondrák noted.
    Visitors will find the planetarium hall equipped with modern projection technology on the first floor. "This is an exceptional space. In it, thousands of stars will shine on a new seamless projection surface with a diameter of 13.2 meters above the visitors' heads, and the full-sky projection will draw them right into the center of the action during audiovisual programs," Janoušková said. According to her, the technology purchased from the USA and Japan is capable of creating an extraordinary atmosphere, allowing visitors to look forward to unique experiences. "The hall also features new sound apparatus, new 3D projection, and light effects. The tiered seating contains one hundred new adjustable chairs," Janoušková specified. The technologies used in the Ostrava planetarium are comparable to most modern planetariums in Europe and overseas, which also allows for the presentation of programs produced abroad.
    The western dome of the observatory is equipped with a new telescope with a diameter of 35 centimeters, and visitors will have the chance to take their own digital photographs of celestial objects.
    "A new and major attraction for visitors will be the Experimentarium. A space where it is possible to experiment, try out, play, and discover the mysteries of natural laws. Practically all areas that were previously inaccessible to visitors have been utilized for its construction," Janoušková said. The Experimentarium is divided into several thematic exhibits. The building also includes a space called the Research Lab, where school or interest groups can try practical activities that will often tie into some of the programs in the planetarium. On the ground floor of one wing of the building is the Mira Gallery, where exhibitions will be held. A new outdoor amphitheater with sundials is also part of the complex.
    The planetarium expects that after the renovation, its attendance could increase from 50,000 to 90,000 people annually. The university received European grants for the modernization of the building, which was opened in the 1980s.