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Dec. 22nd, 2010 09:37 pmI napped after work on Monday and got up around nine to bundle up and head out to the planetarium.
On the way there, I met a couple on the train who were going to the same place. I used the time on the train to take a few photos of the car and the platforms we passed, but the three of us walked from the station to the planetarium together and chatted. They are gamers who live near me in Rogers Park and were fun to talk to. I got the man's email address, but I lost it when I had to do a hard reset on my phone. Damn; I wanted to send him a link to my pictures and stuff! I really have to find those business cards.
We got to the building and found our way to the classroom where the main gathering seemed to be happening. There was a live feed from somewhere that, unlike Chicago, actually had a clear view of the moon projected on a screen. In the back of the room there were three different kinds of yummy cookies as well as some hot cocoa. And it was all, like the event itself, free! I did buy a five dollar ticket that let me into the three shows that were running in the fulldome theatre that night, a cost that I think is a serious reduction from the normal cost.
So the three of us got some food and listened to a presenter talk about the physics of the event for a while. From there, we all watched the first show in the theatre, then watched the eclipse happening some more on the projection screen, then caught the third show, having missed the second. The third show was neat; it was called Exploring the Digital Universe, and the staff member running it said it was kind of an excuse to show off some of the fancy stuff the projection system will do in a way that they don't get to do during regular hours. And it can do some pretty cool stuff! After that show ended, I talked to the presenter for a little while there in the theatre about what the system does and how it works and about the upgrade being done to the old Zeiss projector in the other theatre. I learned some really interesting things, and as much as I wanted to, I did not ask whether you can boot up Portal and play on the immersive dome!
After the show, I spent fifteen or twenty minutes talking to a few volunteers, mainly one who is seriously involved with amateur astronomy in Chicago. He gave me his card so I could get in touch about coming out to one of their meetups, which I'm very interested in doing. He said it really amazes people when they look in a telescope and can see things like binary systems and nebulae even with all the light pollution here in the city. It sounds pretty neat! I also learned he used to be a professional title searcher and loves exploring old buildings, so that lead to some good conversation too! I need to send him a link to my photos.
So finally, around four or four thirty in the morning, I decided to head for home. The sky never did clear up, but I got to see the eclipse on the live feed and coming out was more than worth it. I stopped along the shore on the way back to take a few pictures of the Chicago skyline, swathed in the amber of reflected street lights. I finally made it home around five and crashed before getting up for work at around six-thirty.
---
I hope these multiple pictures don't bug you.
Eclipse Lecture
© Stormdog 2010
Adler Planetarium Fulldome Theatre
© Stormdog 2010
Adler Planetarium Fulldome Theatre
© Stormdog 2010
----------
On the way there, I met a couple on the train who were going to the same place. I used the time on the train to take a few photos of the car and the platforms we passed, but the three of us walked from the station to the planetarium together and chatted. They are gamers who live near me in Rogers Park and were fun to talk to. I got the man's email address, but I lost it when I had to do a hard reset on my phone. Damn; I wanted to send him a link to my pictures and stuff! I really have to find those business cards.
We got to the building and found our way to the classroom where the main gathering seemed to be happening. There was a live feed from somewhere that, unlike Chicago, actually had a clear view of the moon projected on a screen. In the back of the room there were three different kinds of yummy cookies as well as some hot cocoa. And it was all, like the event itself, free! I did buy a five dollar ticket that let me into the three shows that were running in the fulldome theatre that night, a cost that I think is a serious reduction from the normal cost.
So the three of us got some food and listened to a presenter talk about the physics of the event for a while. From there, we all watched the first show in the theatre, then watched the eclipse happening some more on the projection screen, then caught the third show, having missed the second. The third show was neat; it was called Exploring the Digital Universe, and the staff member running it said it was kind of an excuse to show off some of the fancy stuff the projection system will do in a way that they don't get to do during regular hours. And it can do some pretty cool stuff! After that show ended, I talked to the presenter for a little while there in the theatre about what the system does and how it works and about the upgrade being done to the old Zeiss projector in the other theatre. I learned some really interesting things, and as much as I wanted to, I did not ask whether you can boot up Portal and play on the immersive dome!
After the show, I spent fifteen or twenty minutes talking to a few volunteers, mainly one who is seriously involved with amateur astronomy in Chicago. He gave me his card so I could get in touch about coming out to one of their meetups, which I'm very interested in doing. He said it really amazes people when they look in a telescope and can see things like binary systems and nebulae even with all the light pollution here in the city. It sounds pretty neat! I also learned he used to be a professional title searcher and loves exploring old buildings, so that lead to some good conversation too! I need to send him a link to my photos.
So finally, around four or four thirty in the morning, I decided to head for home. The sky never did clear up, but I got to see the eclipse on the live feed and coming out was more than worth it. I stopped along the shore on the way back to take a few pictures of the Chicago skyline, swathed in the amber of reflected street lights. I finally made it home around five and crashed before getting up for work at around six-thirty.
---
I hope these multiple pictures don't bug you.
Eclipse Lecture
© Stormdog 2010
Adler Planetarium Fulldome Theatre
© Stormdog 2010
Adler Planetarium Fulldome Theatre
© Stormdog 2010
----------
