Post by Chicago Astronomer - Astro Joe on Dec 7, 2006 0:48:34 GMT -6
Adler Planetarium
Sunday was quite possibly the most brutally cold weather I’ve been in since the blizzard of ninety-three. No kidding. The wind coming off the lake was nothing short of bone-piercing.
Nonetheless, we drug ourselves out of bed, hiked to the El, and rode down to the museum campus to hit the Adler Planetarium. I was surprised to see that whoever designed the Shedd Aquarium must have done work on the Adler as well, because they both had the same layout (a cloverleaf design that was fairly easy to follow).
Each of the sections of the planetarium featured something different, ranging from Jim Lowell’s experiences as an astronaut, to the history of astronomy, to facts about our own solar system. With a ton of interactive experiments and displays, the Adler would be perfect for a quiet day with a couple of kids, as its entire structure is geared towards learning. For Liz and I (both of who majored in physics during college), it was a lot of the “same old stuff.” While that was slightly disappointing to me, I can’t fault the Adler, as this is the kind of stuff that they want to have in their exhibits, because kids probably don’t know much (if any) of this stuff.
The 21-inch telescope and the Gemini capsule were both impressive displays. The film we saw, however, wasn’t so impressive. It was low-tech animation (when it didn’t need to be), with a storyline that was filled with speculation on future space missions that were sketchy at best.
I would still recommend the Adler for almost anyone who’s interested in learning about astronomy, even if you have a fairly good grasp of the subject. Though I’d suggest skipping the films altogether, as you don’t need them to learn anything, and their not very well done.
Afterwards, we retreated back to the north and the comfort of an Irish pub to escape the unending artic wind that was blowing across the city. Their fire was the perfect antidote for such a cold day.
Source: www.geistweg.com/blog/?p=546
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Sunday was quite possibly the most brutally cold weather I’ve been in since the blizzard of ninety-three. No kidding. The wind coming off the lake was nothing short of bone-piercing.
Nonetheless, we drug ourselves out of bed, hiked to the El, and rode down to the museum campus to hit the Adler Planetarium. I was surprised to see that whoever designed the Shedd Aquarium must have done work on the Adler as well, because they both had the same layout (a cloverleaf design that was fairly easy to follow).
Each of the sections of the planetarium featured something different, ranging from Jim Lowell’s experiences as an astronaut, to the history of astronomy, to facts about our own solar system. With a ton of interactive experiments and displays, the Adler would be perfect for a quiet day with a couple of kids, as its entire structure is geared towards learning. For Liz and I (both of who majored in physics during college), it was a lot of the “same old stuff.” While that was slightly disappointing to me, I can’t fault the Adler, as this is the kind of stuff that they want to have in their exhibits, because kids probably don’t know much (if any) of this stuff.
The 21-inch telescope and the Gemini capsule were both impressive displays. The film we saw, however, wasn’t so impressive. It was low-tech animation (when it didn’t need to be), with a storyline that was filled with speculation on future space missions that were sketchy at best.
I would still recommend the Adler for almost anyone who’s interested in learning about astronomy, even if you have a fairly good grasp of the subject. Though I’d suggest skipping the films altogether, as you don’t need them to learn anything, and their not very well done.
Afterwards, we retreated back to the north and the comfort of an Irish pub to escape the unending artic wind that was blowing across the city. Their fire was the perfect antidote for such a cold day.
Source: www.geistweg.com/blog/?p=546
==============