PEORIA, Ill. — A brand-new, world-class planetarium system will be unveiled at the Peoria Riverfront Museum on Saturday, May 22.
The system, Evans & Sutherland 6.5K Digistar 7, is considered the world’s most advanced system. It uses six laser phosphor projectors for 360-degree high-resolution views.
Peoria will be one of the first places in the world to have the new system, according to Peoria Riverfront Museum President and CEO John Morris.
“It can drive us through space and beyond,” said Morris. “It’s an amazing system for learning and entertainment for our community.”
The projectors previously at the planetarium were becoming worn and dim, according to Morris, so an upgrade was needed.
“Now we have — thank goodness to some generous charitable contributions and some grants — the best system there is,” said Morris.
Morris continued on to say they aren’t even aware of the limits they can reach with the new system.
“The capacity of this tool — it’s like buying the finest television screen and computer in Peoria for education purposes and learning how to drive it,” said Morris. “Wherever there’s real-time data, we can plug it into this system and project it onto this 40-foot dome.”
Morris said real-time seismic earthquake activity can be projected on the dome.
In a demonstration Friday of the new system, viewers were able to see a tour of the solar system and different galaxies.
The museum’s planetarium director, Renae Kerrigan, said all the photos and videos were in real-time.
“When we zoomed away from Earth, you could see the museum in the shot,” said Kerrigan. “That’s all real-time satellite data that allowed us to do that.”
Kerrigan said the older hardware in recent years made it harder and harder to do the visual presentations the planetarium takes so much pride in.
“We’ll be able to do those tours of those universe — now it’s going to be so bright and crisp,” said Kerrigan. “I’m very excited to share that experience with our school kids who visit.
“The first time I saw the Earth from space with our new projection system, when it was all tuned-up and turned on, it took my breath away.”
Morris said they now have the same technology as Adler Planetarium in Chicago, one of the world’s most famous planetariums.
“When you’re on par with the very top planetariums, it’s good for the people of Central Illinois,” said Morris.
As Morris said, part of the funding was made possible through charitable donations. The other part was made possible through a Public Museum Capital Grant from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR).
“The role that government can play, should play, and did play to get this over the finish line is how I view the role of government,” said IDNR Director Colleen Callahan. “While the state of Illinois did play a pivotal role, this is about the future, the education, and the culture.”
The planetarium will reopen on May 22, after being closed since May 2 to install the new system.
The new system is replacing the five-projector 2K system that has been in place since 2007.
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