Word: planetariums
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When New York City's American Museum of Natural History announced a few years ago that it would be rebuilding its hallowed Hayden Planetarium from the ground up, lots of New Yorkers screamed to the heavens--and Neil de Grasse Tyson, the planetarium's recently appointed director, couldn't blame them. For more than 60 years, the Hayden had been bringing the stars to sky-deprived city dwellers, and its frumpy dome, slapped onto the museum's north side, had played host to generations of visitors. That included Tyson himself, whose career as an astrophysicist was first inspired by visits...
...scientist and educator, Tyson also knew that the existing planetarium, with its '30s design and technology, didn't come close to conveying the astonishing discoveries modern astronomy has made in the past few decades, from the Big Bang to black holes. Plummeting attendance in recent years simply confirmed that the Hayden was more compelling as memory than as fact. So Tyson set aside his nostalgia, sat down with architect James Polshek and exhibition designer Ralph Applebaum and got to work...
Last week, four years and $210 million later, the new Hayden (and the Rose Center for Earth and Space that surrounds it) finally made its debut--and it's already clear that this is not your grandfather's planetarium. First there's the building itself--a 10-story glass-walled cube with an 87-ft. aluminum sphere seemingly floating within it. Then there's the space around the sphere. While the old Hayden had only a handful of faded exhibitions to get visitors into a cosmic mood, the new planetarium is overstuffed with information. "We don't really expect anyone...
...ROSE, 75, builder and philanthropist; after a brief illness; in Rye, N.Y.; on Sept. 14. Enthusiastic and mercurial (he made origami animals out of foreign currency), Rose donated more than $95 million to such New York institutions as Lincoln Center, the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Hayden Planetarium...
...have to worry about down-time: the Disney theme parks are only a little more than 50 miles away (but save enough energy for the nonstop pace at Space Camp). Other local points of interest include the Brevard Community College Astronaut Memorial Planetarium and Observatory (planetarium shows, a rooftop telescope, space museum and hands-on exhibit hall), the Piper Aircraft factory (where those interested in aviation on a smaller scale can tour the assembly plant) and the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge (for living proof that nature and technology can coexist peacefully). Finally, you'll want to reserve time...