Top-level Shanghai Planetarium begins to take shape
By:Lu Yukun | From:english.eastday.com | 2019-03-18 21:05
Beside Dishui Lake in the Lingang area of Pudong, the work on the Shanghai Planetarium, which broke ground in November 2016, is now in full swing and the facility has taken shape. As of March 10, the structures of the main building (including the steel frame) as well as other extra facilities have been completed, with the overhanging steel structure unloaded, while 95% of civil construction and 85% of the mechanical and electrical installations have been finished.
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|The 38,164-square-meter planetarium, which consists of three parts
for three celestial bodies -- the Oculus, the Inverted Dome and the Sphere -- will
be the world’s largest of its kind once completed. It is located at the
intersection of Lingang Avenue and Huanhu North 3rd Road near the beautiful
Dishui Lake, which is about 1 hour away from the city center.[!--empirenews.page--]
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23-meter dome theater and an 18-meter high planetarium hall for various
educational and entertainment shows about astronomy are included in the main
building.[!--empirenews.page--]
|Outside the main structure, the planetarium boasts one public observatory
(with a 1-meter-diameter telescope) that allows high-definition observation of
the surface of the moon and planets, a youth camp area that offers observational
activities, and a solar tower equipped with optical devices that can show breathtaking
astronomical phenomenon such as sunspots and solar prominence. Moreover, there
will be a big astronomical garden which will contain many traditional
astronomical instruments and some sculptures about astronomy[!--empirenews.page--]
|The design of the planetarium draws inspiration from orbital motion.
Each of the building’s three principal forms - the Oculus, the Inverted
Dome and the Sphere - act as an astronomical instrument, tracking the
sun, moon and stars and reminding visitors that our conception of time
originates in distant astronomical objects, according to Ennead
Architect, the New York City-based architectural firm which won the
international competition to design the Shanghai Planetarium.[!--empirenews.page--]
| Each of the building’s three principal forms - the Oculus, the
Inverted Dome and the Sphere
