Bochum, 02.07.2020
In 2023, Germany will celebrate a special birthday: the planetarium will be 100 years old. The Gesellschaft deutschsprachiger Planetarien e.V. (GDP) is currently making preparations for the anniversary year with partners worldwide. There are many ideas for activities to spread the word about the invention of the planetarium. As is often the case, one thing is needed to implement them: money. In the Carl Zeiss Foundation, GDP has found an important partner to make the preparations for implementing the actions in the anniversary year possible.
“The planetarium is an outstanding German invention that has continued to evolve over the past hundred years. Today, more than 3,200 planetariums worldwide enable journeys to distant worlds and offer unforgettable experiences,” says a delighted Dr. Björn Voss, president of the GDP. “In various committees and working groups, we are preparing the anniversary year 2023 and have developed many ideas: a planetarium show about “Centennial of the planetariums”, a traveling exhibition, a book publication, a student contest, action days in planetariums, and, and, and. In order to implement all these projects, to draw attention to them and to bundle them on our campaign website, we are dependent on supporters,” continues Voss. Each cent helps, whether as donation or Sponsoring contribution. Interested parties can make initial contact quickly and easily via the website https://planetarium100.org/. 15,000 euros is being provided by the Carl Zeiss Foundation as initial start-up funding. “The birth of the planetarium is inextricably linked with us and the ZEISS company,” explains Dr. Felix Streiter, Managing Director of the Carl Zeiss Foundation. “In addition, the planetarium has an important educational mission.”
From innovation to the planetarium experience
With the projection technology that was developed in Jena at Zeiss and first presented in 1923, the first public planetarium was created two years later in Munich. Since then, more than 3,200 planetariums have been inspiring people all over the world day after day. Whereas in the past, the presentations in planetariums focused on the lifelike replica of the starry sky, today this is supplemented by 360° video projections in which the secrets of the universe can be vividly experienced by all guests. Nothing less than the very big questions of our existence are at stake: Where do we come from? What is the future of the Earth and the universe? And are we alone in space? With these topics and modern presentations, planetariums appeal to all people not only in a factual way, but also in an emotional way. Planetariums make science and human curiosity tangible.
About the GDP
The Gesellschaft Deutschsprachiger Planetarien e.V. (GDP) is an association of planetariums, their employees, as well as people interested in planetariums, mainly from Germany, Austria and Switzerland, but also from other countries, with the aim to promote the cooperation of planetariums in German-speaking countries. The society was founded in May 2011 and is recognized as a non-profit organization.
About the Carl Zeiss Foundation
The Carl Zeiss Foundation has set itself the goal of creating scope for scientific breakthroughs. As a partner of excellent science, it supports both basic research and application-oriented research and teaching in the MINT disciplines (mathematics, computer science, natural sciences and technology). Founded in 1889 by the physicist and mathematician Ernst Abbe, the Carl Zeiss Foundation is one of the oldest and largest private science-funding foundations in Germany. It is the sole owner of Carl Zeiss AG and SCHOTT AG. Its projects are financed from the dividend distributions of the two foundation companies.