Mysore/Mysuru: The Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIA) has achieved a significant milestone in the development of astronomy in the country by placing an order for the world’s first commercial LED Dome Planetarium with the Konika Minolta Inc. Consortium, Japan, which includes RSA Cosmos in France and Orbit Animate in India.

This cutting-edge planetarium will be constructed in Mysuru as part of the Cosmology Education and Research Training Centre (COSMOS), Mysuru project, which is funded by MPLAD funds from Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, the Department of Science and Technology, and the Department of Atomic Energy, Government of India.

The project is being overseen by the Principal Scientific Advisor to the Government of India and is managed by IIA, an autonomous institute under the Department of Science and Technology.

Furthermore, Kothari and Associates in Kolkata has been awarded a contract for the                   architectural work of the campus and building, with the building plans currently being finalised and the process for selecting a civil contractor underway. The planetarium is set to be completed in 2024.

Most planetariums worldwide rely on a projector to cast images and movies onto a passive dome. However, the planetarium system installed in Mysuru will be unique because it will not use a projector at all. Instead, the dome will be made of panels of LED lights that are directly controlled by a computer system.

The planetarium show will be displayed through the LED lights on the dome itself, offering much better contrast with 8K resolution and eliminating issues typically encountered with conventional projection systems.

There are currently only two installations of such a system in the world, both in Japan, and both operated by the vendor themselves for public viewing. This planetarium in Mysuru will be the first LED dome planetarium in the world supplied by the vendor to an independent customer.

The COSMOS in Mysuru will feature a state-of-the-art planetarium as well as a data analysis training and resource centre for students and teachers.

The planetarium will be located in the campus of the University of Mysore (UoM) at the foot of Chamundi Hill and is being executed through a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the IIA and the UoM.

To prepare for the planetarium’s opening, various astronomy outreach and education activities have been underway in Mysuru and surrounding areas for the past year.

These activities include talks on astronomy for college and school students, astronomy data analysis workshops, educational events for rural schools and telescope sessions for the public. These activities will be further intensified in the coming months leading up to the planetarium’s completion.

For further information, Prof. Annapurni Subramaniam, Director, Indian Institute of Astrophysics, can be contacted on Mob: 98451-71233 or e-mail:  [email protected].