Stars in the background
My idea for the stars of Titanic is just thinking of how stars are always in the background, be it Bethlehem or Apollo. But backgrounds are overlooked - minimized when they can be more important than the foreground.
The last 5 commercial planetarium programs I have attended, the stars have been in the background - several of them had them whirling around, no better than disco lights .. with no thought of accuracy or anything!
But background is a worthy subject - if you get to thinking - the stars have been the background for all of history - look at that newly enhanced photo at gettysburg - a public domain photo that somebody decides - wait .. there are 3 pictures back to back .. unusual for the time given the expense .. and they are not AT the Gettysburg reviewing stand, they are to the RIGHT of it .. now why... and they enhanced it and zoomed it ... and there .. in the background .. sits a man on a horse .. with a beard... and a stovetop hat .. and its got to be Lincoln riding up to give his immortal address ..
whats in the background of history?
A silhouette in a planetarium gives the impression of distance - trees, mountains, buildings .. the stars loom up larger than any life here on earth . as they loom large throughout time in history, mythology, and lives.
Perhaps WE are the background, passing through briefly midst the eternal stars.
Tuesday, December 25, 2007
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
The Globe Theater and the HPA
Shakespears original Globe Theater was open aired - that means playgoers could literally attend their midsummer nights dreams under the stars. I wanted to recreate that experience, not literally of course - too much rain in middle Tennessee, but I built a planetarium instead. Lassoed the stars if you will, then looked into the 'great beyond' of cyberspace and found I wasn't alone in this unique pasttime.
Other luminaries beckoned, all I had to do was ask. I bought the projector from a reclusive genius named Steve Smith - drove to Arizona one improbable 72 hours with my father, Nashville to Douglas AZ and back to retrieve it. Smith had spent a year painstakingly creating both a scientific instrument and folk art - a 20 inch copper cylinder that is best looked at before seeing what it can show you. 85 lenses - it takes the breath away. But the others, they are out there. Ron Walker near Phoenix, filmmaker and purveyor of dreams, called me one day, or tried to. He restores old commercial units, and blends his artist sensibilities with an engineers expertise. I'd never met anyone like Ron. But then others surfaced as if by magic. To wit, Charles Jones, professional magician, appeared out of nowhere (how else?) and demonstrated machines he had built decades ago - he was an expert in many fields, most of all the illusion that is central to the planetarium experience. You WILL believe you are under the night sky, but not tonight in the city .. 100 years ago perhaps - when natures stars were the only cable and movie folks needed .. in their glory.
Owen Phairius appeared, with a collection of vintage scientific apparatus and a dream of opening a museum to display them. Owen's from California - hes run Planetariums for decades, an incredible voice collecting incredible machines. Ken Miller's from California too - an engineer by trade, he can discuss voltages and light bulb specs like most of us discuss the weather. These people rock! And so I built it - my little 15 foot theater - I have a little group called the Home Planetarium Association (www.planetariumsathome.) with a newsletter that comes out when I manage to get it out - very old fashioned. Like the stars. Like the Hayden. Adler. Like Armand Spitz would have liked it. I knew other pioneers in the field, Richard Emmons mainly, who I dub the 'father' of home planetariums. He ran one from his garage, and set one up in an Ohio classroom in the 50's. His daughter is still a valued correspondent. So I built it .. I think they will come to my own little field of dreams. I'll call a newspaper or two soon. And let them in.
Soon George Mohr joined us, a theater man with audio/visual expertise beyond most mortals, and with a historical bent. My old astro friends Murray Cragin and George Kelley proved invaluable resources on most any topic, they being extremely accomplished in amateur astronomy circles for decades. A writer friend, Lynn Teague, proved that we can tap into other thinkers not directly related to astronomy, as the principles, passions and philosophies we are on about are universal. Incredible enthusiasts like Pat Dobbins and other voices from the past and present stir our spirit and keep the energy level incredibly high!
So a core group has appeared. The public is out there. But I'm savoring a few more silent nights by myself with my stars. Gods stars really, they arent mine. But on the other hand, they belong to all of us. Its just that nobody looks at them anymore. I figure maybe I'll start changing that. One child at a time.
Other luminaries beckoned, all I had to do was ask. I bought the projector from a reclusive genius named Steve Smith - drove to Arizona one improbable 72 hours with my father, Nashville to Douglas AZ and back to retrieve it. Smith had spent a year painstakingly creating both a scientific instrument and folk art - a 20 inch copper cylinder that is best looked at before seeing what it can show you. 85 lenses - it takes the breath away. But the others, they are out there. Ron Walker near Phoenix, filmmaker and purveyor of dreams, called me one day, or tried to. He restores old commercial units, and blends his artist sensibilities with an engineers expertise. I'd never met anyone like Ron. But then others surfaced as if by magic. To wit, Charles Jones, professional magician, appeared out of nowhere (how else?) and demonstrated machines he had built decades ago - he was an expert in many fields, most of all the illusion that is central to the planetarium experience. You WILL believe you are under the night sky, but not tonight in the city .. 100 years ago perhaps - when natures stars were the only cable and movie folks needed .. in their glory.
Owen Phairius appeared, with a collection of vintage scientific apparatus and a dream of opening a museum to display them. Owen's from California - hes run Planetariums for decades, an incredible voice collecting incredible machines. Ken Miller's from California too - an engineer by trade, he can discuss voltages and light bulb specs like most of us discuss the weather. These people rock! And so I built it - my little 15 foot theater - I have a little group called the Home Planetarium Association (www.planetariumsathome.) with a newsletter that comes out when I manage to get it out - very old fashioned. Like the stars. Like the Hayden. Adler. Like Armand Spitz would have liked it. I knew other pioneers in the field, Richard Emmons mainly, who I dub the 'father' of home planetariums. He ran one from his garage, and set one up in an Ohio classroom in the 50's. His daughter is still a valued correspondent. So I built it .. I think they will come to my own little field of dreams. I'll call a newspaper or two soon. And let them in.
Soon George Mohr joined us, a theater man with audio/visual expertise beyond most mortals, and with a historical bent. My old astro friends Murray Cragin and George Kelley proved invaluable resources on most any topic, they being extremely accomplished in amateur astronomy circles for decades. A writer friend, Lynn Teague, proved that we can tap into other thinkers not directly related to astronomy, as the principles, passions and philosophies we are on about are universal. Incredible enthusiasts like Pat Dobbins and other voices from the past and present stir our spirit and keep the energy level incredibly high!
So a core group has appeared. The public is out there. But I'm savoring a few more silent nights by myself with my stars. Gods stars really, they arent mine. But on the other hand, they belong to all of us. Its just that nobody looks at them anymore. I figure maybe I'll start changing that. One child at a time.
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
The Next Gadget Syndrone
The next gadget syndrone.
Perhaps its universal - hobbiests and professionals alike. In todays world, everything new is hot, and everything old is hotter! And as I learned with my hard earned new setup (15 foot domed theater with new projector mounting, which took over 2 years), the moment we attain it we want more. Is this the spirit that drove the settlers 'cross those mountains'... over that next hill? I've read where as settlers moved west in search of newer bigger better lands, the ones who followed in their footsteps simply took over the abandoned cabins, farms etc .. is that what we do, we take over someone elses dream because theyve moved on? Our dream is to live their old dream
So theres always a next gadget perhaps. Our wives may be supportive, they may not. We are never really done, and perhaps its better that way. The journey, not the destination? What I like about home planetariums though is we can tinker endlessly at any level - we might yearn after that 32 foot dome or that incredibly exotic antique spitz projector, and sometimes we can obtain them - gitter done .. but we can also strive at incredibly small levels to tweak an exit sign in our theater - to point a star a bit to the west . To try and develop something simple but inspiring to kids.. Theres always the next hill. Even in comfortable retirement I dont think home planetarians will ever be completely satisfied.
And thats part of the thrill.
Perhaps its universal - hobbiests and professionals alike. In todays world, everything new is hot, and everything old is hotter! And as I learned with my hard earned new setup (15 foot domed theater with new projector mounting, which took over 2 years), the moment we attain it we want more. Is this the spirit that drove the settlers 'cross those mountains'... over that next hill? I've read where as settlers moved west in search of newer bigger better lands, the ones who followed in their footsteps simply took over the abandoned cabins, farms etc .. is that what we do, we take over someone elses dream because theyve moved on? Our dream is to live their old dream
So theres always a next gadget perhaps. Our wives may be supportive, they may not. We are never really done, and perhaps its better that way. The journey, not the destination? What I like about home planetariums though is we can tinker endlessly at any level - we might yearn after that 32 foot dome or that incredibly exotic antique spitz projector, and sometimes we can obtain them - gitter done .. but we can also strive at incredibly small levels to tweak an exit sign in our theater - to point a star a bit to the west . To try and develop something simple but inspiring to kids.. Theres always the next hill. Even in comfortable retirement I dont think home planetarians will ever be completely satisfied.
And thats part of the thrill.
Monday, December 17, 2007
Lost in Paradise
Lost in Paradise - from HPA Issue 17 Spring 2007
Gilligans Island should have been my first clue.
Riding from the Honolulu airport to my posh digs on Waikiki Beach for a 3 day sales meeting, the bus driver pointed out the harbor where the famous 'lost' good ship Minnow had set out for that infamous 3 hour tour. Little did I know I was about to begin my own 'lost' journey through some new stars. Forever a denizen of the midwest US, it had been with a thrill to discover that from my position on the south shore of Oahu in April, the Southern Cross and other south sea celestial delights should be visible for the first time ever! What a dream it had been to see the Cross - being a planetarium man as well made constellations my specialty.
All seemed well as I stood on my 12th floor balcony of the Hilton Rainbow Tower - now where are those star charts and binoculars?? ... To my horror I realized they were still on the table back in Tennessee! Like my hero Leslie Peltier arising in a predawn long ago sky to see 'new stars', I would have to face the previously unavailable strip of southern sky alone.. unless .. I could find some equipment and find it fast
I couldn't.
Hotel giftshops on Waikiki offer very little in the way of star atlas's, yet did offer up some rather dubious looking 'field glasses' at a price I won't mention, though I haven't yet succeeded in forgetting. Nowhere on Waikiki seemingly was anything on the stars - I ruefully recalled spending an hour in the SPACE store at the Houston airport before my connection, where dollar starwheels had beckoned . But I had not answered their call.
And so for the next three nights, under various stages of clear, haze, cloud, city lights, and fog, I became Captain Cook again .. sailing into southern skies, at least some of them, unknown to me, unguided. A three hour tour became a three night tour, my balcony became my Minnow. Hotel stationary became my starcharts .. no student of navigation, I wondered if Cook had made his own charts, certainly he had no airport gift shops to assist him. My mind wandered even further back to the original Polynesians who somehow had come here over the trackless Pacific .. they had no Nortons or Atlas of the Heavens to guide them.
The skies shifted almost hourly, but I quickly found some wonders .. over dinner the first night I saw Canopus blinking in the west, daring me to come out and see more. The first night about midnight I banged my head on what had to be Alpha and Beta Centauri, sailing above the mists .. Alpha was blazing brighter than I thought possible. But where was Crux? Later that predawn I almost went over the rail looking at an impossibly high teapot and scorpion.. there were other stars below .. and off in the southeast lonely sentinals. What were they?? I hastily sketched their positions. Happily, the third night paid all, as near midnight again I absent mindedly mused, now what are THOSE stars... and then as if by magic, a mist shifted and I gazed at last upon the Southern Cross.. both larger and smaller than I had imagined, impossibly .. both brighter and dimmer .. images of those archaic classical crosses seemed to flit in and out over the real stars. I stared dumbfounded, but soon succumbed to jetlag and collapsed back into bed ..
Returning home with my newly minted Hilton Atlas (copies available), I confirmed my findings.. Crux, Centaurus, Canopus.. yes that was apparently a distant Archena . the Minnow had returned to harbor.. later I learned the TV series 'Lost' was filming on the north side of Oahu even as I had been wandering amidst uncharted celestial waters in the south. I even drove by the TV home of Dog, the Bounty Hunter. I had been hunting my own bounty!
There may be several morals here I've concluded, back on solid and familiar midwestern ground, but my mind is divided. Astronomy can be pursued armed to the hilt with our equipment and charts, or it can be pursued through the wondering unprepared eyes of a child. Either way gets us where we wish to go though, closer to being one with our beloved stars. The main thing is to take that 3 hour tour.
You'll find your way back with your treasures..
Gilligans Island should have been my first clue.
Riding from the Honolulu airport to my posh digs on Waikiki Beach for a 3 day sales meeting, the bus driver pointed out the harbor where the famous 'lost' good ship Minnow had set out for that infamous 3 hour tour. Little did I know I was about to begin my own 'lost' journey through some new stars. Forever a denizen of the midwest US, it had been with a thrill to discover that from my position on the south shore of Oahu in April, the Southern Cross and other south sea celestial delights should be visible for the first time ever! What a dream it had been to see the Cross - being a planetarium man as well made constellations my specialty.
All seemed well as I stood on my 12th floor balcony of the Hilton Rainbow Tower - now where are those star charts and binoculars?? ... To my horror I realized they were still on the table back in Tennessee! Like my hero Leslie Peltier arising in a predawn long ago sky to see 'new stars', I would have to face the previously unavailable strip of southern sky alone.. unless .. I could find some equipment and find it fast
I couldn't.
Hotel giftshops on Waikiki offer very little in the way of star atlas's, yet did offer up some rather dubious looking 'field glasses' at a price I won't mention, though I haven't yet succeeded in forgetting. Nowhere on Waikiki seemingly was anything on the stars - I ruefully recalled spending an hour in the SPACE store at the Houston airport before my connection, where dollar starwheels had beckoned . But I had not answered their call.
And so for the next three nights, under various stages of clear, haze, cloud, city lights, and fog, I became Captain Cook again .. sailing into southern skies, at least some of them, unknown to me, unguided. A three hour tour became a three night tour, my balcony became my Minnow. Hotel stationary became my starcharts .. no student of navigation, I wondered if Cook had made his own charts, certainly he had no airport gift shops to assist him. My mind wandered even further back to the original Polynesians who somehow had come here over the trackless Pacific .. they had no Nortons or Atlas of the Heavens to guide them.
The skies shifted almost hourly, but I quickly found some wonders .. over dinner the first night I saw Canopus blinking in the west, daring me to come out and see more. The first night about midnight I banged my head on what had to be Alpha and Beta Centauri, sailing above the mists .. Alpha was blazing brighter than I thought possible. But where was Crux? Later that predawn I almost went over the rail looking at an impossibly high teapot and scorpion.. there were other stars below .. and off in the southeast lonely sentinals. What were they?? I hastily sketched their positions. Happily, the third night paid all, as near midnight again I absent mindedly mused, now what are THOSE stars... and then as if by magic, a mist shifted and I gazed at last upon the Southern Cross.. both larger and smaller than I had imagined, impossibly .. both brighter and dimmer .. images of those archaic classical crosses seemed to flit in and out over the real stars. I stared dumbfounded, but soon succumbed to jetlag and collapsed back into bed ..
Returning home with my newly minted Hilton Atlas (copies available), I confirmed my findings.. Crux, Centaurus, Canopus.. yes that was apparently a distant Archena . the Minnow had returned to harbor.. later I learned the TV series 'Lost' was filming on the north side of Oahu even as I had been wandering amidst uncharted celestial waters in the south. I even drove by the TV home of Dog, the Bounty Hunter. I had been hunting my own bounty!
There may be several morals here I've concluded, back on solid and familiar midwestern ground, but my mind is divided. Astronomy can be pursued armed to the hilt with our equipment and charts, or it can be pursued through the wondering unprepared eyes of a child. Either way gets us where we wish to go though, closer to being one with our beloved stars. The main thing is to take that 3 hour tour.
You'll find your way back with your treasures..
In Defense of Leo Minor (as published in the Planetarian)
Ever notice ow certain constellations get more press than others? Maybe I spend far too much time beneath my own dome looking at my own stars, but the constellations above my head begin to tell me things after awhile. True, I build my own planetariums, so perhaps I have a bit more vested interest and right to call them 'my stars', and maybe the constellations talk to me in the privacy of my own dome more than they would say in a more public dome. They tend to be more shy then I think, and perhaps a bit more resentful that cable tv, dvds, and glowing screens have largely replace them as an evenings entertainment. But they talk to me as I mentioned, and they are concerned that certain of their .. umm. members get far more press than the others.
I had to admit it was true, that even I tend to look at the same constellations over and over and ignore the rest. The big boys and girls, I need not mention them, with their swords and belts and sisters and sea monsters threatoning, their heros and myths. For awhile then I listened to the gripes of constellations that were overlooked but admittedly still famous, and its time to name some names. Aquarius lamented nobody sings about him anymore, and Capricorn butted me in a vain attempt to get some attention. And on and on it went. Finally I contemplated the twins of the skies, there were more than I thought when I really looked at it, and I heard a tiny voice crying from my sky overhead. It was Leo Minor.
'What about ME' he cried!
He had a point. The two bears get all the attention he pointed out, and those Centaurs. True enough. The Dogs... they were bright and in full glory, couldn't argue there. Geminii even represented the original 'two for one' sale idea. 'I represent the little guy' Leo Minor argued, the lesser of the celestial pairs, that forgotten brother or sister who gets shunted off to the corner. 'Got any examples?' I asked him bravely.. I'd never even identified him in the shadow of his big Lion King bro, and even now I was hard pressed to see where his voice was coming from. He warmed to his subject. 'Take horses'.. the big horse with the wing thing is famous, but who can find Equlous? Theres a big snake hogging tons of sky, but Hydrus her jilted boyfriend? Doesn't he need some attention too? Who looks at the southern stuff? Their triangle, their crown?
'Wait' I argued .. the southern Fish is brighter than the Pieces... 'Exceptions. exceptions' he continued.. Serpens may be in two parts, but he gets more looks that Lazerta or Chamaleon!? Leo Minor had made his point I suppose, so I conceded someone needed to put in a word for those lesser twins .. those forgotten sisters and brothers and objects up there in the sky that deserve at least passing mention. As I headed for the dome of my home built 15 foot domed theater, I already heard Aquila and Cygnus trying to make up with Pavo and Phoenix. Grus was crying in the corner.
The last thing I saw before flipping on the lights was Leo Minor curling up with the Lynx and going to sleep'.
Ever notice ow certain constellations get more press than others? Maybe I spend far too much time beneath my own dome looking at my own stars, but the constellations above my head begin to tell me things after awhile. True, I build my own planetariums, so perhaps I have a bit more vested interest and right to call them 'my stars', and maybe the constellations talk to me in the privacy of my own dome more than they would say in a more public dome. They tend to be more shy then I think, and perhaps a bit more resentful that cable tv, dvds, and glowing screens have largely replace them as an evenings entertainment. But they talk to me as I mentioned, and they are concerned that certain of their .. umm. members get far more press than the others.
I had to admit it was true, that even I tend to look at the same constellations over and over and ignore the rest. The big boys and girls, I need not mention them, with their swords and belts and sisters and sea monsters threatoning, their heros and myths. For awhile then I listened to the gripes of constellations that were overlooked but admittedly still famous, and its time to name some names. Aquarius lamented nobody sings about him anymore, and Capricorn butted me in a vain attempt to get some attention. And on and on it went. Finally I contemplated the twins of the skies, there were more than I thought when I really looked at it, and I heard a tiny voice crying from my sky overhead. It was Leo Minor.
'What about ME' he cried!
He had a point. The two bears get all the attention he pointed out, and those Centaurs. True enough. The Dogs... they were bright and in full glory, couldn't argue there. Geminii even represented the original 'two for one' sale idea. 'I represent the little guy' Leo Minor argued, the lesser of the celestial pairs, that forgotten brother or sister who gets shunted off to the corner. 'Got any examples?' I asked him bravely.. I'd never even identified him in the shadow of his big Lion King bro, and even now I was hard pressed to see where his voice was coming from. He warmed to his subject. 'Take horses'.. the big horse with the wing thing is famous, but who can find Equlous? Theres a big snake hogging tons of sky, but Hydrus her jilted boyfriend? Doesn't he need some attention too? Who looks at the southern stuff? Their triangle, their crown?
'Wait' I argued .. the southern Fish is brighter than the Pieces... 'Exceptions. exceptions' he continued.. Serpens may be in two parts, but he gets more looks that Lazerta or Chamaleon!? Leo Minor had made his point I suppose, so I conceded someone needed to put in a word for those lesser twins .. those forgotten sisters and brothers and objects up there in the sky that deserve at least passing mention. As I headed for the dome of my home built 15 foot domed theater, I already heard Aquila and Cygnus trying to make up with Pavo and Phoenix. Grus was crying in the corner.
The last thing I saw before flipping on the lights was Leo Minor curling up with the Lynx and going to sleep'.
Bigger Part 2
Building planetarium domes is a whole class of ideas, thoughts, challenges, frustrations, and dreams unto itself is it not? Google up 'domes' and there are people 'out there' (out there is a favorite phrase - out where? - my other favorite phrase is 'they make those' ... where exactly ARE 'they'??.. why they are OUT THERE, of course! ) - 'they' make domes of every description for every purpose. Rest areas - greenhouses - planetariums.
But for the home guy armed with stepladders, home depot tools (or lowes), and luckily for me, an old barn to hang things off of or at least to give moral support), vexing problems build as we get BIGGER. A central question seems to be - bottom up, or top down?
I've been top down so far. Ive built 9 and 15 foot domed theaters. But I couldnt make them water proof, so first I had to have a shed roof over the top. This had several advantages - keeping the rain out is huge, but it also gave a top support, allowing me to use light weight, bendable materials. But a guy with a stepladder can only build a shed so high.
So I begin to think, well it has to be built bottom up .. from the underside. But that goes against every roofing principle that says shingles have to overlap top down or the water wont run off! Then I read the geodesic crowd (bucky fuller) advocates top down, but you build the top on the ground and HOIST it up a mast, then build down.. Now THAT might work! the uppermost part is prebuilt, then suspended WAY UP THERE, and the lower regions (reachable by stepladder) are build around it in (hopefully) perfect symetry. Then the roof can be completed.
The center support post is removed once its self supporting.
This might work..
But for the home guy armed with stepladders, home depot tools (or lowes), and luckily for me, an old barn to hang things off of or at least to give moral support), vexing problems build as we get BIGGER. A central question seems to be - bottom up, or top down?
I've been top down so far. Ive built 9 and 15 foot domed theaters. But I couldnt make them water proof, so first I had to have a shed roof over the top. This had several advantages - keeping the rain out is huge, but it also gave a top support, allowing me to use light weight, bendable materials. But a guy with a stepladder can only build a shed so high.
So I begin to think, well it has to be built bottom up .. from the underside. But that goes against every roofing principle that says shingles have to overlap top down or the water wont run off! Then I read the geodesic crowd (bucky fuller) advocates top down, but you build the top on the ground and HOIST it up a mast, then build down.. Now THAT might work! the uppermost part is prebuilt, then suspended WAY UP THERE, and the lower regions (reachable by stepladder) are build around it in (hopefully) perfect symetry. Then the roof can be completed.
The center support post is removed once its self supporting.
This might work..
Let the Music Do the Talking
You know, we in home planetaria are all about sight arent we - visuals .. from tiny lights to shimmering explosions - but the idea is born that some of a show could be in the total black of night .. a portion of a show could be ONLY sound - though i know kids fidget in total darkness, im covering my pilot lights on sound equipment with tape but you can still see them, and ive got a lighted exit sign (very dim) so that the eye can still reassuring see something - but sound alone can be such a big part of this, why not have a little part of a show thats ONLY sound .. music .. perhaps pre-big bang.. then a dot of light - the singularity .. from whence light came, and all sight. Perhaps the universe is based, no matter what specifically we believe, on great themes of music - could not sound have preceeded sight? Not in a vacuum you say, but we can bend those laws in the planetarium - stir the emotions and wonder with sound before light takes over.
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Original Starmyth - Head North Said the Hunter
Head North said the Hunter .. an original starmyth by Gary Likert
Once upon a time long ago a little bear cub became lost in the woods while playing by a stream. His mother gone on ahead over the next hill and told him to follow, but he had not obeyed, and before long the afternoon sun began to sink in the west and he noticed he was alone. 'If I climb the tallest tree I can find, maybe I'll find her', he thought, and promptly did so. He thought he saw some bear tracks heading north, over the tops of the trees, and then he did something wonderful. Not knowing he wasn't a magic bear, he jumped up onto a passing cloud and floated into the sunset sky. But then it began to get dark, and the stars came out, one by one.
The little bear liked the stars, and decided he would find some he felt most comfortable with and stay and live in the sky. Maybe mother had come this way as well. Soon though the little bear found others already living in the sky, and many of the stars were already taken. He tried moving in with a Scorpion, but was soon stung ! 'Move on, no room here', said scorpio. He next went over to the stars with the shining belt, and seemed to fit in there but was startled to hear a deep voice saying 'Head North'.. it was the Hunter of the sky, and he had taken the stars with the shining belt. So the little bear, fighting back a tear or two, took the Hunter's advice and headed north in the sky and then something equally wonderful occurred! He spied in the distance another bear! And as he drew closer, he saw that indeed it was his mother, and she had found some delightful stars all her own, they had been dragon wings she said but he no longer flew. And best of all, she had saved some for him .
He moved into the stars she saved for him, and ever since, mother and cub have revolved round and round the heavens from the far northern post, chasing each other in joy for being together again in such a beautiful new home. Gaze at the sky any clear night and follow the Hunter's advice.
Head north, said the Hunter.
Once upon a time long ago a little bear cub became lost in the woods while playing by a stream. His mother gone on ahead over the next hill and told him to follow, but he had not obeyed, and before long the afternoon sun began to sink in the west and he noticed he was alone. 'If I climb the tallest tree I can find, maybe I'll find her', he thought, and promptly did so. He thought he saw some bear tracks heading north, over the tops of the trees, and then he did something wonderful. Not knowing he wasn't a magic bear, he jumped up onto a passing cloud and floated into the sunset sky. But then it began to get dark, and the stars came out, one by one.
The little bear liked the stars, and decided he would find some he felt most comfortable with and stay and live in the sky. Maybe mother had come this way as well. Soon though the little bear found others already living in the sky, and many of the stars were already taken. He tried moving in with a Scorpion, but was soon stung ! 'Move on, no room here', said scorpio. He next went over to the stars with the shining belt, and seemed to fit in there but was startled to hear a deep voice saying 'Head North'.. it was the Hunter of the sky, and he had taken the stars with the shining belt. So the little bear, fighting back a tear or two, took the Hunter's advice and headed north in the sky and then something equally wonderful occurred! He spied in the distance another bear! And as he drew closer, he saw that indeed it was his mother, and she had found some delightful stars all her own, they had been dragon wings she said but he no longer flew. And best of all, she had saved some for him .
He moved into the stars she saved for him, and ever since, mother and cub have revolved round and round the heavens from the far northern post, chasing each other in joy for being together again in such a beautiful new home. Gaze at the sky any clear night and follow the Hunter's advice.
Head north, said the Hunter.
Writing Our Own Starmyths (Why Not)
Writing Your Own Starmyth
Why cant we write out own myths? As I researched, pondered, mediated, and basically fussed over writing my own planetarium show, I kept running my head into this brick wall. Starshows require constellations. And constellations are shining history books, historical, no MYTHICAL figures. Ancient characters and stories handed down from peoples we slightly revere but frankly don't know much about. I'm talking about Greeks.. Chaldean shephards. Greek myths, but Arabic star names. But then there are so called 'modern' constellations as well.. scientific apparatus, mountains, even a telescope. All this set me to thinking. HPA Is all about home grown. So my next thought was .. Why not write my own myths?
Or at least one or two, to try them out. Myths have some basis in reality if you go back far enough, maybe? So that means at one time somebody wrote them, or did the deeds referred to. Was Perseus an actual guy? Medusa's hairdresser perhaps? But this gave me pause. Am I rewriting history? Would some kid startle a teacher in class someday with a totally foreign story about a well known king or queen doing or saying things quite unknown to anyone outside my dome? As much as I tried to worry about this, I never could take it completely seriously.
Everyone's writing children's stories it seems these days. Why couldn't I? Now I COULD see the dangers of taking this 'home grown' thing too far. I wasn't about to declare new constellations, or rename stars. Myth writing needed rules, seemingly. Science and wonder walk hand in hand in a planetarium, but each deserve their own space. I was well aware of the 'star naming' controversy, how educators and scientists were horrified with the concept of 'stars as gifts'. As most kids grew out of this after a few years anyway, I myself however saw any chance to spur interest in the stars a good one. I was excluding astrology however. I was spurring interest and wonder, not predicting the future.So sitting in my creative refuge, my domed star chamber (more on that in a minute), I decided to plunge in and write one. A Star myth. It sprang from my new handheld constellation shadow projectors (more on those too). The fact that I was keeping them at present handheld so I could find their constellation stars at any position overhead had me playing with them. Wandeirng them over the skies toward their eventual goal I finally begin picturing kids giggling as say,the Little Bear emerged from the southern horizon and ambled around, looking for his stars. well, this is for kids. Here goes ....
(continued next blog entry)
Why cant we write out own myths? As I researched, pondered, mediated, and basically fussed over writing my own planetarium show, I kept running my head into this brick wall. Starshows require constellations. And constellations are shining history books, historical, no MYTHICAL figures. Ancient characters and stories handed down from peoples we slightly revere but frankly don't know much about. I'm talking about Greeks.. Chaldean shephards. Greek myths, but Arabic star names. But then there are so called 'modern' constellations as well.. scientific apparatus, mountains, even a telescope. All this set me to thinking. HPA Is all about home grown. So my next thought was .. Why not write my own myths?
Or at least one or two, to try them out. Myths have some basis in reality if you go back far enough, maybe? So that means at one time somebody wrote them, or did the deeds referred to. Was Perseus an actual guy? Medusa's hairdresser perhaps? But this gave me pause. Am I rewriting history? Would some kid startle a teacher in class someday with a totally foreign story about a well known king or queen doing or saying things quite unknown to anyone outside my dome? As much as I tried to worry about this, I never could take it completely seriously.
Everyone's writing children's stories it seems these days. Why couldn't I? Now I COULD see the dangers of taking this 'home grown' thing too far. I wasn't about to declare new constellations, or rename stars. Myth writing needed rules, seemingly. Science and wonder walk hand in hand in a planetarium, but each deserve their own space. I was well aware of the 'star naming' controversy, how educators and scientists were horrified with the concept of 'stars as gifts'. As most kids grew out of this after a few years anyway, I myself however saw any chance to spur interest in the stars a good one. I was excluding astrology however. I was spurring interest and wonder, not predicting the future.So sitting in my creative refuge, my domed star chamber (more on that in a minute), I decided to plunge in and write one. A Star myth. It sprang from my new handheld constellation shadow projectors (more on those too). The fact that I was keeping them at present handheld so I could find their constellation stars at any position overhead had me playing with them. Wandeirng them over the skies toward their eventual goal I finally begin picturing kids giggling as say,the Little Bear emerged from the southern horizon and ambled around, looking for his stars. well, this is for kids. Here goes ....
(continued next blog entry)
Monday, December 3, 2007
Bigger Part 1
I want a bigger dome. Sumner Countys first planetarium was a 9 footer. Its second is a 15 footer. But when you reach for the stars, whether mother natures or your own, bigger just seems to come with the territory. Amateur Astronomy saw the Dobsonian revolution, and 32 inch telescopes are now to be found at some national star parties. A far cry from my Villa Park Il backyard 2.4 department store scopes in the mid 60's. But it happens with planetariums too. The bigger the star ball the better the images, if you are using pinhole projection, like nearly all home planetarium people. Those at least who use traditional projection techniques, not video projectors. But no matter what your projection technique, you are sending those stars to a simulation of infinity. And in a total contradiction, infinity can be sized in a planetarium dome. The biggest thrill of all when building a bigger planetarium is 'first light', when you turn them on for the first time. And now the Hunter towers over you like he never did before. And the great bears have become greater. And Canis Major is more major than ever. And the heavons show even greater glory than they did for the past few years. I want a bigger dome. Building the 9 foot took 2 years to think up a solution. Building the 15 foot took 2 years to actually do it. Is this how the pyramid builders felt? Stay tuned. gare dec 3 2007
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