The WorldWide Telescope Windows Client is configurable for a variety of settings – from large public planetariums using multi-monitor projection systems, to inflatable domes using simple single-surface mirrors and projectors appropriate for school environments or education events.

This is a do-it-yourself option for creating a planetarium for about $900 (USD) using supplies from local office and hardware stores and a special first surface spherical mirror.

Many kids never have a chance to go to a bricks and mortar planetarium to learn astronomy, so we created a virtual planetarium with WorldWide Telescope. However, outer space is still best experienced in an immersive environment like a dome, so we have published a set of plans that enable schools to build their own small planetarium that will allow 15-30 kids at a time to experience a high-quality digital projection of space. The investment is around $700 in building materials, plus a laptop and projector, along with some household tools and sweat equity.

One of the principal benefits of having an on-site planetarium is that WorldWide Telescope will allow kids to create their own shows to share what they have learned with other kids - completing the learning cycle.

WorldWide Telescope can easily be configured to work in an inflatable dome such as the Go-Dome pictured here. Using a laptop or desktop computer with a projector and either a fisheye lens or spherical mirror, you can project WorldWide Telescope onto the inflated dome, allowing an immersive environment for exploration of the sky and the 3D universe.

The image is an example of a portable planetarium that can be used with WorldWide Telescope for educational and public outreach events. It is a portable 13’ (4 meters) diameter, 9’ (3 meters) high inflatable dome that is small enough to be shipped as luggage and is very easy and quick to assemble. Portable domes as large as 30' (9 meters) are available.

For more information on Go-Domes domes see http://www.go-domes.com/ (Not affiliated with Microsoft Research)