Visitors to the new Shanghai Astronomy Museum can be transported across time and space thanks to the multiple exhibits and displays made possible though Christie laser projections.
Located in the Lingang area of Shanghai, the new Shanghai Astronomy Museum, a 38,000-square-meter (420,000-square-feet) structure, is currently the world’s largest museum solely dedicated to the study of astronomy. It is designed by US-based design firm Ennead Architects and features an exterior design without the use of straight lines or right angles, a concept inspired by the orbits of celestial bodies and the geometry of the cosmos. Instead, the building’s three main architectural components — the Oculus, Inverted Dome and Sphere — function as astronomical instruments that track the sun, moon and stars.
The layout extends to the museum’s interiors, where numerous exciting exhibits are powered by audiovisual technologies to provide a highly engaging and immersive experience to visitors. These include projections accomplished by more than 40 Christie HS Series and GS Series 1DLP laser projectors of varying brightness — from 6,350 to 20,600 lumens — and image resolutions, along with real-time video playback and processing achieved by the Christie Pandoras Box V8 and Christie Widget Designer.
Christie’s trusted partners Wincomn Technology and Zhongqing Yingye Group were responsible for the installation and commissioning of all projection solutions across the museum. The suite of Christie Pandoras Box products were installed by Marvel Vision, one of Christie’s distributors for content management and image processing solutions in China.
April Qin, sales director for China, Enterprise, Christie, commented, “The Shanghai Astronomy Museum marks a new milestone in the integration of science, nature and modern technology to provide an ‘out-of-the-world’ experience for astronomy fans and the general public. We are thrilled that a wide range of Christie laser projection and content management solutions have been installed by our partners to deliver awe and wonder, enabling visitors of all ages to explore the universe with greater detail and realism.”
The laser projectors are deployed across 12 galleries in the three main exhibition zones titled “Home,” “Cosmos” and “Odyssey,” which lead visitors on a tour around the solar system, faraway galaxies and even black holes. The exhibits are also designed for a greater understanding of the history of astronomy and inspire visitors to think about its future.
Among the highlights are stunning projections on a huge rotating globe measuring 20 meters in diameter using seven laser projectors, and interactive projections on a large wall measuring 60 meters in length.
