Zeiss_projector

Zeiss projector

A Zeiss projector is one of a line of planetarium projectors manufactured by the Carl Zeiss Company. Main models include Copernican (1924), Model I (1925), Model II (1926), Model III (1957), Model IV (1957), Model V (1965), Model VI (1968), Spacemaster (1970), Cosmorana (1984), Skymaster ZKP2 (1977), and Skymaster ZKP3 (1993).[1]

The Mark I projector installed in the Deutsches Museum in 1923 was the world's first planetarium projector.
The Mark III modified projector installed in the Planetario Humboldt 1950 in Caracas - Venezuela.It is the oldest in Latin America.
Marks II through VI utilized two small spheres of lenses separated along a central axis.
Beginning with Mark VII, Zeiss projectors adopted a new, egg-shaped design.
The Mark IX Universarium is currently the most advanced model. This example was installed in 2006 at The Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles.
Closeup of a lens bearing sphere of the Zeiss Mark IV planetarium projector on display at the Nehru Planetarium in Mumbai, India.

The first modern planetarium projectors were designed and built in 1924 by the Zeiss Works of Jena, Germany in 1924.[2] Zeiss projectors are designed to sit in the middle of a dark, dome-covered room and project an accurate image of the stars and other astronomical objects on the dome. They are generally large, complicated, and imposing machines.

The first Zeiss Mark I projector (the first planetarium projector in the world) was installed in the Deutsches Museum in Munich in August, 1923.[3] It possessed a distinctive appearance, with a single sphere of projection lenses supported above a large, angled "planet cage". Marks II through VI were similar in appearance, using two spheres of star projectors separated along a central axis that contained projectors for the planets. Beginning with Mark VII, the central axis was eliminated and the two spheres were merged into a single, egg-shaped projection unit.

History of development and production

The Mark I was created in 1923–1924 and was the world's first modern planetarium projector.[3] The Mark II was developed during the 1930s by Carl Zeiss AG in Jena. Following WWII division of Germany and the founding of Carl Zeiss (West Germany) in Oberkochen (while the original Jena plant was located in East Germany), each factory developed its own line of projectors.[4]

Marks III – VI were developed in Oberkochen (West Germany) from 1957 to 1989. Meanwhile, the East German facility in Jena developed the ZKP projector line.[4] The Mark VII was developed in 1993 and was the first joint project of the two Zeiss factories following German reunification.[4]

As of 2011, Zeiss currently manufactures three main models of planetarium projectors. The flagship Universarium models continue the "Mark" model designation and use a single "starball" design, where the fixed stars are projected from a single egg-shaped projector, and moving objects such as planets have their own independent projectors or are projected using a full-dome digital projection system. The Starmaster line of projectors are designed for smaller domes than the Universarium, but also use the single starball design. The Skymaster ZKP projectors are designed for the smallest domes and use a "dumbbell" design similar to the Mark II-VI projectors, where two smaller starballs for the northern and southern hemispheres are connected by a truss containing projectors for planets and other moving objects.[5]

Between 1923 and 2011, Zeiss manufactured a total of 631 projectors.[6] Therefore, the following table is highly incomplete.

More information Planetarium, Acquisition Date ...

See also


References

  1. "Planetarium history". ZEISS Group. Retrieved 13 May 2022.
  2. Christopher Dewdney. Acquainted with the Night: Excursions Through the World After Dark. Bloomsbury Publishing USA; 2005 [cited 14 October 2011]. ISBN 978-1-58234-599-4. p. 278–279.
  3. Carl Zeiss AG. "Planetarium projector models since 1942". Archived from the original on 13 February 2012. Retrieved 22 August 2008.
  4. "Carl Zeiss STARMASTER Models ZMP and ZMP-TD – Product Specifications". meditec.zeiss.com. 2011. Retrieved 23 September 2011.
  5. Prager, Lutz (8 February 2011). "In Jena Optik-Kolloquium zu Planetariumsbau". Ostthüringer Zeitung. Gera. Retrieved 4 October 2011.
  6. Kok, Albert (1 September 2018). "Verbrand planetarium krijgt tweede leven en komt terug naar Den Haag" [Burned planetarium gets second life and comes back to The Hague]. Algemeen Dagblad (in Dutch).
  7. Ley, Willy (February 1965). "Forerunners of the Planetarium". For Your Information. Galaxy Science Fiction. pp. 87–98.
  8. Glenn A. Walsh. "The Adler Planetarium and Astronomy Museum". Retrieved 28 July 2008.
  9. Steve Johnson (11 June 2011). "Countdown to 'wow'". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 23 June 2011.
  10. Planetario Luis Enrique Erro (IPN). "Sitio oficial del Planetario Luis Enrique Erro del Instituo Politecnico Nacional". Instituto Politecnico Nacional.. (in Spanish)
  11. Bangkok Planetarium. "ความเป็นมา (History)". Bangkok Planetarium official website. Bangkok Planetarium. Retrieved 30 November 2008.. (in Thai)
  12. "Nagoya Science Museum". Zeiss.de. 23 December 2011. Retrieved 20 May 2012.
  13. Fernbank Science Center Planetarium. "Official website of the Fernbank Science Center". Retrieved 16 July 2009.
  14. The New York Times (11 August 1999). "Updating City's Star System; Planetarium Introducing Mark IX for Outer Space". The New York Times. Retrieved 7 October 2008.
  15. Humboldt Planetarium. "El Planetario – Reseña Histórica". Retrieved 4 January 2009.
  16. Planetario Humboldt at Spanish Wikipedia (in Spanish)
  17. Johannesburg Planetarium. "History of the Planetarium". Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 26 January 2012.
  18. The Manitoba Museum. "Planetarium General Information". Retrieved 28 July 2008.
  19. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. "Morehead History". Retrieved 28 July 2008.
  20. The St. Louis Science Center. "James S. McDonnell Planetarium". Retrieved 1 August 2008.
  21. Strasenburgh. "RMSC Strasenburgh Planetarium – The Star Projector". Retrieved 4 September 2008.
  22. "Planetario de Bogotá – Historia". planetariodebogota.gov.co (in Spanish). 2011. Archived from the original on 7 October 2011. Retrieved 23 September 2011.
  23. "A Brief History of Fiske Planetarium". University of Colorado at Boulder. Archived from the original on 3 June 2010. Retrieved 31 July 2010.
  24. USACH. "Infraestructura Planetario USACH". Retrieved 4 October 2013.
  25. Carl Zeiss Planetarium Division. "Planetario Universidad de Santiago" (in Spanish). Retrieved 4 October 2013.
  26. "Planetário Calouste Gulbenkian" (in Portuguese). Retrieved 18 July 2009.
  27. The Council of Independent Colleges. "Historic Campus Architecture Project: Bradley Observatory and Delafield Planetarium". Retrieved 31 May 2011.
  28. "Nehru Centre Mumbai". Nehru Centre. Archived from the original on 26 December 2012.
  29. "Planetario di Milano - Lo strumento planetario" (in Italian). Retrieved 16 November 2014.
  30. "Planetarium.be". Retrieved 5 August 2015.
  31. "UPP 23/5 nl" (PDF). Retrieved 5 August 2015.
  32. "UPP 23/5 fr" (PDF). Retrieved 5 August 2015.
  33. "FUNESC". 6 July 2016.
  34. Kulkarni, A. G. (June 1981). "Planetaria in India" (PDF). Planetarian. 10 (2). International Planetarium Society: 27.

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