Modernizing the Moscow Planetarium

Global Immersion has been awarded the contract by the Moscow Planetarium to design and integrate six digital displays into three theatres throughout the facility. The theatres are a key part of the large-scale modernization and expansion, and are scheduled for completion in December 2010 when the building will reopen to the public.
                           


Since opening in 1929, Moscow Planetarium has been a center for thousands of schoolchildren to gaze at the stars and learn about man’s place in the Universe. The facility closed in 1994 when building modernization talks first began. The new team in Moscow has now finalized renovation plans that will see an expansion of the historic building from 32,000 square feet to 182,000 square feet – making way for a Museum of Astronomy and History of Space Travel, and the new theatre, facilities and exhibits within it.
 
Global Immersion has also been asked to design and build a central production suite and render farm.

Speaking about the multiple contract award, Martin Howe, chief executive at Global Immersion says, “Our new partnership with Moscow Planetarium marks a true milestone in the continued expansion and development of our organization. We are delighted to be working with such an ambitious client who shares our ideals of pushing the boundaries of immersive theater, and envisage each of the new displays and experiences at the Moscow facility as being some of the very best in the world.”

The 82-foot planetarium will house a seven-channel/fourteen-projector Fidelity Bright digital full dome system. The dome periphery will feature a separate digital panoramic hybrid display - completely synchronized with a new optical star projector from Carl Zeiss.

To expand upon the full dome functionality, a third Fidelity 3D display employing the new Sony SRX-T420 4K projector will project a 17-meter giant screen 3D image from the rear of the theatre. The planetarium will seat up to 364 visitors at a time, and will be managed entirely from the Fidelity Play media server and storage facility in the central server room.
 


In addition to the core planetarium facility, Global Immersion will be installing two multi-dimensional experiences for visitors. A 47-seat Intensity 4D theatre will be integrated with motion seating from D-Box Technologies, ambient sensory effects, and special effect lighting and audio systems. Separately, a 4.6-meter production dome will employ a full dome display with LED-projection technology, and a further stereoscopic 3D full dome display system – complete with an additional D-Box motion seat installation.
 
A range of high-specification real-time, playback and control solutions will support all of the new theatre.