In Irkutsk, the Noosphere museum complex opened in the 130th district, combining a public observatory, planetarium, multimedia museum and restaurant. The new planetarium will host astronomy lessons, films and sky observations.
In the 130th district of the city of Irkutsk, the museum complex “Noosphere” has opened to visitors; it includes a public observatory, a planetarium, a multimedia museum, and a restaurant. Governor of the Irkutsk Region Sergey Eroshchenko took part in the ceremonial opening.- Today, the Irkutsk planetarium is experiencing a second birth. We can be proud that the new planetarium will be the fifth in Russia equipped with the most modern technology. I am confident that the educational center will be very popular with Irkutsk residents and visitors to the city. – Governor Sergey Eroshchenko noted.
Let us recall that the first Irkutsk planetarium was opened in March 1950 in the building of the Trinity Church. In total, during the period after the closure of the Irkutsk planetarium in 1986, eight projects for its revival were developed, but only the ninth was brought to life.
The new planetarium has a dome diameter of 9.14 meters and is designed for 50 seats. Its equipment will make it possible to display the starry sky, planets, nebulae, and galaxies, and to conduct astronomy lessons. In addition, in the hall with the spherical dome it will be possible to watch special educational films. The multimedia museum makes it possible, using large plasma panels and projections on the walls, to reproduce a variety of video sequences to accompany lectures on any topic. The public observatory is equipped with telescopes for observing celestial bodies at night, as well as the Sun in white light and in the red hydrogen line. The telescopes for the planetarium were provided by Irkutsk State University.
The planetarium was built by the Metropol Group of Companies on the initiative of its founder, now Deputy Chairman of the State Duma Committee of the Russian Federation on Natural Resources, Environmental Management and Ecology Mikhail Slipenchuk. In the spring of 2011, in May, construction of the Noosphere complex began. It is expected that the complex’s capacity will exceed 100,000 people annually.
Based on materials from the press service of the Irkutsk administration.