Tampa’s Museum of Science and Industry (MOSI) is opening the second-largest planetarium in the US next year.
The museum in Florida is transforming its former IMAX dome theatre into the new digital dome theatre and planetarium in a multimillion-dollar project.
The new attraction will be powered by 10 huge, cutting-edge digital projectors by Christie, the global visual and audio technology company. Per a press release, the new 8K technology is sharper, brighter and more immersive than the old technology used inside the dome in 2017.
In addition, the former IMAX’s entire 10,000-square-foot screen has been replaced.
New digital dome theatre at MOSI
“We’re talking about pull-you-in and blow-your-mind educational fun,” said MOSI’s CEO John Graydon Smith. “Our eight-story-tall screen will surround you with science, with 360-degree movies and the second-largest digital dome planetarium in America.”
MOSI’s investment comes as jobs in STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) are projected to grow by almost 11 percent by 2031, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
“We believe in the power of STEM learning to transform lives. This investment at MOSI will give students in Tampa Bay the biggest and best STEM learning destination anywhere in the southeastern US,” Smith said.
As above, the new theatre will also serve as MOSI’s new Saunders Planetarium, which can seat 46 guests at a time and has a diameter of 30 feet. The new space can seat more than 300 people and has a diameter of 82 feet.
The largest planetarium in the US is the Jennifer Chalsty Planetarium in New Jersey.
MOSI’s new theatre and planetarium is expected to open for field trips, museum guests, and special events in the first half of 2025.
The Museum of Science and Industry recently opened a new interactive experience where young visitors can fly real drones. Called Flight Club Drone Zone, the new attraction is a permanent addition to MOSI.
Images courtesy of MOSI
