ALL-STAR CAST COLLEGE SHOWS OFF PLANETARIUM.Byline: Lisa M. Sodders Staff Writer VALLEY GLEN - Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. Valley College's planetarium projector A planetarium projector is a device used to project images of celestial objects onto the dome in a planetarium. The first modern planetarium projectors were designed and built by Carl Zeiss in 1924 Germany, and have grown more complex. was so old, it predated mankind's landing on the moon. But thanks to a $300,000 grant from NASA NASA: see National Aeronautics and Space Administration. NASA in full National Aeronautics and Space Administration Independent U.S. , the community college has a state-of-the art SciDome digital planetarium projector, which will be formally presented to the public today and Saturday. ``When you live in a light-polluted area like a city, people don't quite appreciate the sense that space is three-dimensional,'' planetarium planetarium, optical device used to project a representation of the heavens onto a domed ceiling; the term also designates the building that houses such a device. A modern planetarium consists of as many as 150 motor-driven projectors mounted on an axis. director David Falk David B. Falk (born 1950)[1][2] is an American sports agent who primarily works with NBA players. He is best known for representing sports icon Michael Jordan for the entirety of Jordan's career. said. ``This instrument will help us. We can actually fly through space and get a sense of space and that the galaxy is rotating.'' During an open house tonight, visitors will be able to see demonstrations of the new projector, a miniature model of a tornado and an infrared camera. They also will be able to view celestial objects through the observatory's Celestron telescope. About 1,000 students a week use LAVC's planetarium - some as part of their science requirements, others as a gateway to a science career. ``It's so important for first-generation college students to find out what science is - that it's not something unattainable, that there are real jobs and real demand for minorities,'' said Don Gauthier, chairman of the Earth Science Department. With Griffith Observatory closed until May 2006 for a renovation, Valley College and other local planetariums are helping to meet the pubic's demand for astronomy programs. California State University, Northridge CSUN offers a variety of programs leading to bachelor's degrees in 61 fields and master's degrees in 42 fields. The university has over 150,000 alumni. It's also home to a summer musical theater/theater program known as TADW (TeenAge Drama Workshop) that leads teenagers through an , has its Donald E. Bianchi Planetarium, with a Spitz-512 star projector and 40-foot dome, offering star shows to the public Friday nights. Pierce College will have its own planetarium in a few years. Until then, it has an active astronomy club that's open to the public and offers everything from field trips to the Mount Wilson observatory Mount Wilson Observatory, astronomical observatory located in California on Mt. Wilson, near Pasadena. Mt. Wilson Observatory was founded in 1904 by George E. Hale. Its equipment includes 100-in. (2.5-m) and 60-in. (1. to camping trips under the stars. Lisa M. Sodders, (818) 713-3663 lisa.sodders(at)dailynews.com IF YOU GO The SciDome star projector will be demonstrated at the Los Angeles Valley College LAVC redirects here. For the software library, see libavcodec. The university is adjacent to Grant High School. Often called "Valley College" or simply "Valley" by those who frequent the campus, it opened its doors to the public on September 12, 1949, at which time the campus was Planetarium, 8-11 p.m. today and Saturday. A lecture will be held at 9 p.m. on ``The Evolution of Stars, Galaxies and Life.'' CAPTION(S): photo, box Photo: David Falk, assistant astronomy professor, projects an image of Saturn onto Los Angeles Valley College's planetarium dome, just refitted thanks to a NASA grant. An open house is scheduled for today and Saturday. John Lazar/Staff Photographer Box: IF YOU GO (see text) |
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