Kerala   

Honouring Galileo

– Photo: S. Gopakumar

Science for the masses: The mobile science exhibition unit of the Kerala State Science and Technology Museum.

By preferring scientific evidence to popular belief, Galileo Galilei revolutionised the way mankind saw the stars and the planets. And it was to celebrate the 400th anniversary of the first telescopic sightings carried out by the Italian astronomer in 1609 that the UN General Assembly designated 2009 the International Year of Astronomy.

With the objective of taking science and technology to the common man and also to celebrate the year, the Kerala State Science and Technology Museum will shortly launch a Mobile Science Exhibition unit.

The unit consists of a van and two buses carrying 24 interactive exhibits and a mini planetarium. It will tour schools, colleges and other educational institutions in and around the State.

The State government has provided a grant and has also purchased telescopes for the unit. The Newtonian and Schmidt reflective telescopes have been bought from the U.S. They are fully computerised, with a celestial database of around 40,000 objects, a primary mirror of 6 inch diameter, an optical tube and a strain-free rotating mount. The telescopes also feature an inbuilt computer which records the celestial objects and a camera which allows the user to snap pictures of the star or planet he is viewing.

The unit also has a projection room—actually an inflatable balloon that can seat about 30 persons—which can recreate the feel of a planetarium using an LCD projector.

“This project is not only aimed at students or professionals in the field of science and technology but also people from different fields like the fishermen and farmers,” said Arul Prakash, Director, Kerala State Science and Technology Museum.

Fishermen had approached the museum to learn about different stars and planets as it helped them when out at sea.

The departments of Marine Resources and Meteorology would also be benefited by these mobile units as they would help them in monitoring and studying tidal waves and earthquakes, he added.

Rhea Abraham

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Stories in this Section

Tecom team arrives tomorrow
Floating supermarket
State facing health crisis
Colours speak the language of silence
On home turf
Elephant turns violent
Honour comes calling
At risk
Assumes charge
Building on a rich legacy
Giving wings to your dreams
Global infrastructure
For high growth career
Conflict over tea e-auction
Honouring Galileo
Power-saving exercise

Copyright © 2009, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu