Sub-Saharan Africa’s biggest planetarium has relaunched as the new state-of-the-art Wits Anglo-American Digital Dome after it underwent an R90 million refurbishment project.
Sub-Saharan Africa’s biggest planetarium has relaunched as the new state-of-the-art Wits Anglo-American Digital Dome after it underwent an R90 million refurbishment project.
The planetarium is now a high-tech immersive auditorium, with 10 digital projectors to give a full dome resolution. The sound in the Digital Dome has also been upgraded to an 8.2-channel audio system.
“We have created a high-tech 360 immersive experience,” said Moumita Aich, the head of the dome.
“We don’t just want it to be used for astronomy — humanities students can use it for their projects and tech companies can show us their innovations, so that’s the goal once it’s opened.”
The dome, which was opened in 1960, has over the years projected significant historical events, including being the first venue in South Africa to screen footage of the Apollo 11 moon landing in 1969. It also introduced the annual “Star of Bethlehem” show in 1974.
When the planetarium was built, it housed a Zeiss projector, which was used to train pilots and sailors in celestial navigation before and during World War II.
The revamped dome will serve as a visualisation theatre, laboratory, teaching venue and collaborative research space for various scientific disciplines. It will also host public shows including scientific documentaries to 360-degree animated shows to entertain adults and children.
It is expected to open to the public in February 2025 after a pilot phase with Wits students and staff from November to January.
South Africa is home to the biggest planetariums in Africa such as the Iziko Planetarium and the Digital Dome in Cape Town’s Company Gardens. The Cape Town planetarium has a 15.2 metre dome and can seat 144 people. In 2017, it underwent an R30 million upgrade after 31 years to keep up with the rapid growth of technology.
The Naval Hill Planetarium in the Franklin Game Reserve in Bloemfontein is the first digital planetarium in sub-Saharan Africa.