Williamstown – Williams College has installed a new planetarium projector in the Old Hopkins Observatory, the oldest extant astronomical observatory in the United States, built by Prof. Albert Hopkins and his students in 1836-38.
The new projector, a Zeiss Skymaster, was installed in late April, replacing the observatory's 42-year-old planetarium projector, which Jay M. Pasachoff, director of the Hopkins Observatory, said "was on its last legs. I have every hope that the new planetarium projector will equal the lifespan of its predecessor, providing education and entertainment for Williams students, local schools, and the general public."
"The moon and planets no longer worked with the old planetarium projector," said Pasachoff," so we were unable to demonstrate many of the important astronomical phenomena." Fine adjustments of the new projection equipment will allow the positions of not only thousands of stars but also the planets Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn to be projected accurately over time spans of decades.
Funds for the planetarium projector were provided by the Class of 1958 Fund for Faculty Development.
Planetarium shows will be given free on Tuesday and Thursday nights during the summer, from June 21 through mid-august. Special shows for groups can be arranged on request. Call (413) 597-2188 for reservations.
Shows this summer will be given by students Megan Bruck, Owen Westbrook, Joseph Gangestad, David Butts, Anna Tsykalova, Amy Steele, and Adam McKay, as well as by alumnus David Ticehurst and Keck Summer Fellow Jennifer Yee.
The new Zeiss Skymaster ZKP3/B projector was constructed at the Zeiss factory in Jena, Germany, and installed by their technician, Gerhard Ploetner, over a two-week period. Installation was supervised by Earl Smith Jr., of facilities maintenance at Williams. Bruce Wheat of the college's information technology department supervised installation of an upgraded sound system and the computer projection.
The Zeiss projector is of the optomechanical type, with actual lenses and gears providing the motion.
"We are still years away from computer projection reaching the quality of the Zeiss project," said Pasachoff. "Computer projection systems have very blobby stars and the experience is far from that of the simulated night sky under the Zeiss. But to dip our toes into the digital world, our new planetarium system is soon to include a small, digital projector from the Ansible Company. Rather than project onto a 20-foot dome overhead, however, it will project into a 4-foot dome set into a wall."
"Because of the Zeiss's jewel-like quality, we have every hope that it will function for at least 42 years as did the previous planetarium projector," said Pasachoff. "Indeed, perhaps we should use it to simulate the sky in June 2047, when it will reach the same age as the projector we just removed."
Pasachoff came to Williams in 1972, and serves as Field Memorial Professor of Astronomy. He is president of the International Astronomical Union's Commission on Education and Development. He and John R. Percy of the University of Toronto are co-authors of the new book "Teaching and Learning Astronomy: Effective Strategies for Education Worldwide" (Cambridge University Press). This is the successor to "The Teaching of Astronomy," which they edited based on an International Astronomical Union colloquium held at Williams College in 1988 for the sesquicentennial of the Hopkins Observatory.
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Former Harry's Supermarket Under Construction for Restaurant
Late last month, the Conservation Commission greenlit some tree pruning on the property. New windows and a new door can be seen in the front of the building.
"It's a substantial renovation that's currently underway here," Brent White of White Engineering said, speaking on behalf of the applicant and owner, Huajie Zhu.
A fire gutted the longtime Wahconah Street supermarket in 2023, and the following year, Zhu purchased the property for $460,000 two years ago to build a restaurant with hibachi in the existing footprint of the more than 100-year-old building.
White explained that the project has been ongoing for over a year, and the Community Development Board granted the property a waiver to reduce the minimum required number of parking spaces so that additional spaces aren't needed.
He noted that, looking at the site plan, there is very little room to do so. A mirror will be installed near the sharp turn on Bel Air Avenue to alleviate traffic concerns.
Pruning will be done on trees in the southeast corner of the existing paved parking lot, as a number of branches are hanging over. The new owners also intend to patch, sealcoat, and re-stripe the parking lot.
A fire tore through the building less than an hour after the supermarket closed for the day three years ago. An automatic sprinkler system is required for the new use.
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