The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : A world of astronomy unfolds at Kotturpuram

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Feb 15, 2007
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Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

A world of astronomy unfolds at Kotturpuram

Staff Reporter

Exhibition at Periyar Science and Technology Centre

SPACE ENCAPSULATED: Enthusiastic school students trying out the functioning of an astronomical equipment at an exhibition that began at the Tamil Nadu Science and Technology Centre, Kotturpuram, on Wednesday. — Photo: Shaju John

CHENNAI : If you are a student interested in astronomy and willing to learn more, perhaps the place to visit is the Periyar Science and Technology Centre, Kotturpuram, where an exhibition on `the world of astronomical observatories' is on.

The month-long expo has been organised by the Tamil Nadu Science and Technology Centre, in coordination with the National Council for Science Museum, Kolkata, mainly to attract young minds.

It was inaugurated on Wednesday by State Higher Education Secretary K. Ganesan.

The exhibition traces the humanity's quest to learn about heavenly bodies through observational astronomy, from the Stone Age to the Space Age. It explains how technological developments in astronomy have transformed the way humans looked at the sky.

It has panels and interactive exhibits that explain in simple language the history and science behind astronomical observatories, from the contributions by great Indian astronomers and mathematicians such as Aryabhatta and Bhaskara and other developments worldwide several centuries ago.

At the planisphere, an interactive exhibit, a dial can be rotated and aligned to any date and time to view the stars and constellations according to that time. The exhibit also explains how one can calculate cosmic distances and map the sky.

There is also information about early telescopes and how large telescopic mirrors are made. The distance measurement techniques, importance of spectroscopy in analysing the star's composition and rightness are also explained.

Photographs taken by the NASA's space observatories such as the Hubble and Chandra

are featured in another panel. There were also details about the work done by the Indian Institute of Astrophysics.

One of the major attractions is presentation of the working principle of the Charge Coupled Device through computer animations and a related game is also provided to understand the concept. The authorities at the planetarium explained to the school children, who visited the exhibition, that the CCD finds wide application in astronomical observations.

Other principles that were explained through working models include adaptive optics, thermal distortion, Doppler effect and resolving power of telescopes. There were also many other interactive exhibits and panels explaining various astrophysical concepts and instruments with the objective of creating interest in astronomy among students and the public.

The exhibition will be on for a month.

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