A New Planetarium at the Liberty Science Center
January 20, 2018
On November 9th, the Jennifer Chalsty Planetarium was opened at the Liberty Science Center in Jersey City, NJ. It now holds the record as the biggest planetarium in the United States, beating the previous record holder, The Hayden Planetarium in New York. The planetarium is named after a donor who donated over five million dollars to renovate the dome. With ten different projectors and high resolution, it is one of the most advanced planetariums in the world.
For over eight years, the IMAX theater at the Liberty Science Center has been a major tourist attraction. However, as technology grew, the IMAX theater slowly became obsolete over the past decades, and as a result, the popularity of the IMAX dropped significantly. After a couple of years, the directors at the Liberty Science Center have finally decided to refurbish the theater into a commodious planetarium, seating over 400 people. It is also one of the most technologically advanced, with over 88,000,000 individual pixels to display hundreds of stars.
The planetarium is enormous. The Hayden Planetarium, the second largest planetarium in America, can fit inside the IMAX dome alone. The planetarium displays virtual tours of the solar system, giving a 30-minute, in-depth video of the planets. With advanced technology and an impressive size, the new planetarium is now attracting visitors from all over the tri-state area. The Liberty Science Center is a great tourist spot for all types of people and is now open for astronomy lovers.