What’s up everybody?
We are still having some weird weather out here in Chicagoland. It’s been cold and wet. In fact, it is snowing as I write this. It feels more like winter than it does spring. Luckily for us, the sun decided to come out from behind the clouds over the weekend. To be honest, I have been suffering from a bad case of cabin fever and really need to get out. It was really good to finally do that. We jumped in the car and headed towards the big city to check off one of my bucket list items. And that Was the Shedd Aquarium, but we figured since we were up there we would do a two-for and see the Adler Planetarium as well.
I have considered myself an astro-nerd for a long time. I’m not sure if astro-nerd is even a term but we’ll use it anyway. Ever since I was a kid, I have loved to watch and read science fiction. One of my favorite movies of all time is Star Wars. Even though Episode VIII did leave a bit of a bad taste in my mouth, but thats a discussion for another time. It will always be one of my favorite franchises. I wanted to be there flying through the infinite of space and battling my way across the cosmos in my starship with an alien counterpart.
In recent years my passion for space has been put on the back burner as life has changed and other things became more important. I will have to say that sadly, the planetarium was not on my radar for things to see. Which was unfortunate. If I had done my research on it, like I usually do, I would have been a lot more excited to see it.
In 1928 Max Alder, a retired executive of Sears, traveled to Germany after hearing stories about their amazing planetariums. What he found there was the recently invented Zeiss Projector. The Zeiss Projector was a machine that accurately projected the night sky onto a domed theater screen. Inspired but what he had seen, upon his return back to the states, he immediately went to work coming up with an idea for his vision of a planetarium. He donated funds and a Zeiss Projector to the project.
The honor of designing the build fell upon famed residential architect Ernst Grunsfeld. After some issues on where to built the Planetarium, they settled on building it on Northerly Island. This small island is found just off the shore of Lake Michigan. It is connect to the mainland by a small causeway. The original Planetarium was a twelve-sided building with a stone facade and topped with a dome. In 1991, it went through a remodel and a glass pavilion was built around the backside which faces Lake Michigan. They say that the best view of the Chicago Skyline can be seen from the planetarium and I will have to say that they are not lying. It is a spectacular view. In May of 1930 Adler Planetarium, the first planetarium in the western hemisphere, opened to the public.
I know, its not the outside of the building that draws people to the planetarium. Its whats inside that everyone wants to see. The Adler Planetarium houses three theaters for your viewing pleasure. Johnson Star Theater, Definiti Theater, and the Grainger Theater. Fun fact: the Grainger Theater is the same theater that housed the original Zeiss Projector but remodeled and updated. The tickets that we purchased allowed us to choose any two shows that we wanted. We seen Planet Nine, which talks about finding the fabled ninth planet in the Kuiper Belt on the edge of our solar system, and Cosmic Wonder, which talks about thing that have been discovered throughout our universe. Both shows were good and very informative.
There are exhibits for kids of all ages and all worth the time to explore and ponder about. There were two that I found very interesting. Astronomy in Culture and Mission Moon.
Mission Moon goes over the history of the U.S. trying to reach the moon and the reaches of space through the eyes of Captain Lovell and his family. Just incase you’re not sure who Captain Lovell is. He was the lead astronaut on Apollo 13, which suffered from a catastrophic failure. He and his crew valiantly and successful figured out a way to pilot their capsule back to Earth. There is a part of the exhibit that gives you the opportunity to put you in their shoes. You are given a panel of switches and you have to choose four of them to keep your capsule functioning without using too much power. It gives you an idea of the hard decisions they had to make to survive.
I will have to say it was all cool but my favorite part of this exhibit was the Gemini Spacecraft. It was a vehicle that carried two astronauts and orbited the Earth at lower levels. The purpose of these mission was to develop techniques for space travel, being able to work on vehicles in the vacuum of space and to perfect orbiting maneuvers. All this training would eventually be used in developing the Apollo Missions, which would place a man on the moon.
The Astronomy in Culture exhibit I thought was the best part of the planetarium. Yes, there are lots of cool stuff throughout, but this exhibit really shows the history of astronomy. Many of the objects date back centuries. A good example is all the antique telescopes that are on display. Some even used by Galileo himself, unless I read the plaque incorrectly. Many of the items on display in this exhibit were initially bought by Max Adler before the planetarium opened. It became known as the Mensing Collection of Historical Scientific Instruments. Wow! That was a mouthful. The collection continued to grow throughout the years as many curators of the planetarium pushed to expand it to make it the awesome sight it is today.
My love for space might have fallen a little in recent years but with our visit to the planetarium it has rekindled that old flame. Walking through the exhibits reminding me of the wonder I used to have as a child. For those that are passionate or for those who are just getting into astronomy should check this place out. A wonder for all ages. You wont be disappointed.
Well my time is up! As always, thanks for stopping by. Until next time.
Josh
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