The University of Texas at Arlington is now boasting a planetarium experience that's out of this world, thanks to a hefty tech overhaul. UTA's planetarium, a local hotspot for roughly 50,000 stargazers annually, has been supercharged with the Digistar 7 projection system - the most advanced of its kind available on the commercial market. With the power to paint the cosmos across a 60-foot dome projection in ultra-bright, high-resolution splendor, the new system provides visitors with a tour of the universe, detailed planetary explorations, and the latest data direct from NASA and NOAA, in real-time.
Snagged with help from a $50,000 donation by Arlington's Women Inspiring Philanthropy, the upgrade was a match made in the stars as the University of Texas System’s Library, Equipment, Repair, and Rehabilitation Budget doubled down on the gift. The project was a group effort, pulling together UTA’s Office of Information Technology, the Office of Facilities Management, and even students from the Computer Science and Engineering Department - who churned out some 3D printed hardware at the Central Library's FabLab and whipped up software vital for the projection geometry.
The planetarium director, Levent Gurdemir, didn't hide his excitement when discussing the Digistar 7's capabilities. "The Digistar 7 system has better rendering capabilities and more detailed images," Gurdemir said. He underscored the importance of the system as it replaced its predecessor, Digistar 6, hailing it as "a major leap forward." This futuristic tech will also be the centerpiece during the highly anticipated total solar eclipse occurring on April 8, 2024, according to the City of Arlington, Texas.
It's not just the main planetarium getting all the love. UTA's Observatory, perched atop the Park Central Garage, has completed a shiny new upgrade for its teaching and outreach facility. Boasting a fully automated 16-inch LX200GPS Meade Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope, a host of optical filters, an auto-guiding system, a weather station, and a camera feeding live astronomical footage straight to the planetarium, the observatory stands as Dallas-Fort Worth's only public space program offering. According to the fabulously enhanced viewing potential, the Observatory, having a motorized dome structure, is unmatched in the area.
The upgraded facilities couldn't come at a better time with the aforementioned total solar eclipse painting dark their skies this spring. Touted as a once-in-a-lifetime cosmic performance only occurring every four centuries, the "totality" crossing North Texas places UTA at the center of eclipse mania. Visitors can expect the partial eclipse to kick off at 12:23 p.m. and wind down by 3:02 p.m., the total black-out to dazzle from 1:40 p.m. to 1:44 p.m., showering the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex in stellar glory. "UT Arlington’s location in the middle of the Metroplex is perfect for viewing this rare solar eclipse," Gurdemir shared in anticipation, marking the observatory as prime real estate for this celestial spectacle, as per the City of Arlington, Texas.
