Planetarium Jakarta: West Java

I have always been fascinated with the stars and have visited many planetariums on my travels. There is an excellent one in Jakarta located inside the Taman Ismail Marzuki (TIM) arts complex in Central Jakarta.

The Planetarium Jakarta has pictures of celestial bodies, astronaut’s voyages to the moon and replicas of their vehicles. It’s projector enables visitors to see celestial bodies like the moon, the sun and other planets, stars nebulae and galaxies on a domed screen 22 metres in diameter.

Besides a Universarium Projector M VII made by Carl Seizz, there are several special effects projects that show, among other things, the orbital motion of planets around the Sun, solar and lunar eclipses, meteor showers, lightning and a rotating Earth. This enables viewers to experience flying in outer space and be amazed by the architecture of the universe.

The Planetarium Jakarta also has an observatory with four small telescopes and a heliostat, each perched on a small, domed roof. Different programs and shows are held every week. The Planetarium is open Tuesday through Sunday with different viewing times mainly for schools, groups and individuals.