A planetarium projector like the ZEISS UNIVERSARIUM IX in Vienna stands in the middle of the auditorium.

Product highlight

So close to the sky

4 February 2025 3 min read

Planetariums bring us closer to the infinite vastness of space. More than 100 years ago, ZEISS presented the world’s first optomechanical star projector, inspiring young and old alike. The technology has evolved but the fascination for looking into infinity has endured.

100 years of

Zeiss Planetariums

1 of 16

1923

The first planetarium projector

shows the northern night sky over Munich.
1926

Model II

could display the starry sky regardless of its position.
1953 - 1977

Plan to develop projector

models III, IV, V, VI for
large planetariums.
1967

Spacemaster RFP

was the first to enable realistic space flight effects.
1977

Skymaster ZKP 2

could present shows in an automated way using perforated cards.
1987

Cosmorama

is the name of the first planetarium projector controlled by a computer.
1987

M1015

practical projector especially for medium-sized domes.
1987

Stellarium

is the first projector using fiber optics.
1996

Universarium MK VIII/IX

is ZEISS’ most powerful planetarium system.
2000

First digital fulldome projection systems

the digital transition is being ushered in. Digital projectors gain in significance versus optomechanical projectors.
2005

ZKP 4 Hybrid

First combination of fiber glass and digital projection.
2008

VELVET

Digital projector with a particularly high contrast ratio.
2011

ZKP 4 LED

uses LED light sources.
2018

UNIVIEW

ZEISS manages the control software independently.
2021

ASTERION

Compact projector for medium-sized dome.
2023

ASTERION Premium

complete system containing both a planetarium projector and digital projectors.

Dr. Hannes Richter designs and presents shows at the Zeiss Planetarium in Vienna.

Even after the presentation in the planetarium of the Vienna Adult Education Center, the big children’s eyes are still in awe. “Is the room spinning?” You need a little time to get back to the here and now. Moments like these show Dr. Hannes Richter that he is in exactly the right job. The qualified astrophysicist designs and presents shows at the Zeiss Planetarium in Vienna’s Prater Park. He gives his audience a view of our starry sky, the Milky Way and the infinity of space. He whisks visitors away to another world of space and time. “Thanks to our ZEISS projection technology, we are able to create such a natural presentation that the audience immerses itself in our shows and is captivated by the fascination and beauty of the universe,” explains Richter. He is not just interested in the universe, but also in science. Richter both enjoys and takes his educational mission from the Vienna Adult Education Center to which the planetarium belongs very seriously. He finds it fulfilling when he develops new shows for the planetarium with his colleagues using the latest scientific findings and then makes more than just children’s eyes light up.

Projection planetariums

ZEISS has played an enormous part in making shows like these possible today. Walther Bauersfeld, engineer at ZEISS, designed the first projection planetarium in the world along with his team. Here, celestial bodies appear as spots of light on the ceiling of a dome that spans the auditorium like a canopy. In 1923, Bauersfeld presented his projector to a small internal circle at the Deutsches Museum in Munich with overwhelming success. In 1925, the first public planetarium was opened there. Since then, everyone has been able to take an uninterrupted look at celestial bodies.

Martin Kraus still enjoys going to the planetarium even as Head of ZEISS Planetariums.

Martin Kraus, Head of ZEISS Planetariums is particularly proud of this. He says, “Thanks to our technology, people can see the starry sky in the planetarium more clearly than they can outside. There is no light pollution here. The many light sources of our civilization, some of which outshine the stars, do not interfere.” The particularly clear and precise image of the starry sky is made possible thanks to ZEISS star projectors. In the past, apertures in particular ensured that tiny spots of light were projected into the planetarium’s dome. Modern devices conduct LED light via glass fibers thinner than a human hair (see also: Extraordinary jobs, page 42). ZEISS technology makes 7,000 to 9,000 spots of light shine in this way. “In a dome with a diameter of 23 meters, we can image tiny stars of 0.7 millimeters,” says Kraus, highlighting the precision of ZEISS projectors. Their particular advantage is they only bring light to the planetarium sky where a star should appear.

Combining technologies

Combining technologies ZEISS has not only shaped the fascination of the planetarium with the central projector: digitalization (at ZEISS) has been making its own way for some time now. On the one hand, special digital projectors supplement the spots of light from the central star projectors. They have been developed in such a way that they disturb the darkness in the planetarium as little as possible. They can be used, for example, to project images of star forming regions and videos from the International Space Station (ISS) into the starry sky. On the other hand, ZEISS also supplies the software that regulates the interaction of all the projectors.

The Zeiss Planetarium in Vienna has been offering stargazing for more than 60 years.

Hannes Richter at the Zeiss Planetarium in Vienna greatly appreciates the ZEISS UNIVIEW software. It is perhaps the most important tool he uses when developing new shows in Vienna. In order to always be able to offer something new, he regularly comes up with stories he can show and tell his audience.

He focuses on regular events where there are lots of shooting stars, or links celestial events up with special days such as Valentine’s Day, Halloween or New Year’s Eve. The Zeiss Planetarium in Vienna is not only a place to learn about the heavens, but also for earthly celebrations. There are special offers for children’s birthdays. Proposals of marriage have also been made in the Zeiss Planetarium in Vienna as part of the show. A romantic setting under a clear, breathtaking starry sky.