18 Zeiss Planetarium Jena

18 Zeiss Planetarium Jena

The Zeiss Planetarium in Jena is the world’s oldest surviving standalone large planetarium.

The idea for building a large planetarium came from Oskar von Miller, the founder of the German Museum in Munich. In 1913, he approached the Carl Zeiss company in Jena.

The first public trial presentations in a provisional dome on the roof of the Zeiss factory attracted nearly 80,000 visitors from late July 1924 onwards.

This great interest led to the construction of a permanent large planetarium in Jena. In 1926, the planetarium, the fourth of its kind worldwide, was opened to the public. The interior dome has a diameter of 23 meters.

On a total projection area of 900 square meters, visitors can observe the movements of celestial bodies. Educational programs, as well as impressive laser and entertainment shows, bring the starry sky to life.

Since 2011, a modern Carl Zeiss projection system, combined with a 3D sound system from the Ilmenau Fraunhofer Institute for Digital Media Technology, has transported visitors into the vastness of the artificial night sky.

Carl Zeiss itself has gained worldwide recognition over time for producing precision mechanical and optical elements, particularly for cameras and microscopes.

 

Contact:
STERNEVENT GmbH
Zeiss-Planetarium Jena
Am Planetarium 5
07743 Jena
Tel.: +49 3641 885488
Fax: +49 3641 885420
www.planetarium-jena.de