ZEISS Hybrid Planetarium

The M.P. Birla Planetarium in Kolkata, where the stars are almost close enough to touch thanks to ZEISS.

Since time immemorial, people have been gazing up at the heavens, searching for the origins of life and its meaning. This curiosity has always been particularly pronounced in India, as Dr. Debiprasad Duari, an astrophysicist and Director of the M.P. Birla Planetarium in Kolkata, himself knows. “One of humanity's oldest cultures has its roots here. How people think and conduct everyday life is strongly connected to the universe,” he says. “This is not only reflected in our deep religious beliefs but also in architecture.” So it’s no wonder that the Kolkata planetarium, constructed in 1962, was not only the first of its kind in Asia but also features a design inspired by the stupa, a structure built in honor of Buddha.

Following a two-year renovation, the planetarium reopened on 18 July 2017. Since then, there has been substantial interest from the public: the planetarium has attracted over a million visitors. One of the reasons is certainly the ZEISS STARMASTER VELVET Hybrid Planetarium which, together with VELVET 360° projection technology, replaced the original ZEISS projector. “The system produces the best virtual night sky,” says Duari. Thanks to the world's highest image contrast, the video projections even appear in 3D. Yet things won't stop there. “In the future, we're planning to use virtual reality technology," says Duari.