The Dome
Using state-of-the-art digital technology to present breathtaking images onto a 360° domed ceiling, The Dome is a totally immersive experience.
The first show in The Dome has been specially created for the Centre and is called Lifeseeker.
Your class becomes the crew aboard Lifeseeker, the most advanced research craft ever built, on an interactive fact finding mission to discover the conditions that sustain life in the most extreme conditions here on Earth and to see whether life really could exist on other planets.
Lifeseeker is interactive with each crew member having a contribution to make to control the ship and information collected. If the Lifeseeker mission is to be a success, everyone’s input is essential as your actions and choices determine where the mission goes and what you might discover.
Each mission is a unique experience as your choices can take you from Antarctica or the rainforests here on Earth to places where no one has been before on a trip to Mars and into outer space to see if we are alone in the universe.
A visit to The Dome to see Lifeseeker show can also be supported by new workshops in Lifelab.
Aliens: How do we know they are not here already?
This is really an exercise in logical thought and the way that scientists often prove points using indirect evidence. The Students will be introduced to the Drake Equation and asked to consider the likelihood that there is intelligent like elsewhere in the universe. They then explore what an intelligent organism adapted to live on Earth would look like. Simple biological rules mean that it is likely to be bilateral, erect, between 1m and 3m tall and have some kind of arms and some kind of legs, ie humanoid. Following this, the legend of the Loch Ness Monster will be examined with details of how ecological productivity measurements from the Glen Ness hillsides finally proved that Nessie could not exist. The same oblique approach will be adopted to consider the chance of contact with intelligent aliens. This workshop will not disprove the existence of aliens but it will prove how unlikely it would be to meet them.
What evidence is there to support Darwin?
Based on our experience with “Debates with a Difference”, this activity seeks consensus rather than differences of opinion. Students will be given access to a wide range of scientific and religious views on how life on our planet got here. The sources of information will be newspaper and magazine articles and other published documents such as the transcripts from the Wilberforce/Huxley debate and the Scopes Monkey trials. Students will be asked to summarize the views of each group and identify which statements are facts and which are opinions in each case. Each group will then be asked to discuss their personal opinions on the strength of Darwin’s claims and devise a statement to which all can agree.
Habitats
A hands-on investigation to explore adaptation to habitats. Participants will carry out experiments to discover if invertebrates hide under stones to avoid light or desiccation or both. They will use water baths to discover their personal optimum bath temperature then discover how water can feel hot and cold at the same time and relate both to their body temperature. Finally they will carry out activities to investigate the efficiency of camouflage.
Minibeasts and Me
Children see (and handle where appropriate) a variety of exciting invertebrates and work out the key differences between the major families. The lab finishes with a short story which includes role play and engenders respect for all living creatures.
The Dome is also capable of showing the latest planetarium shows. These include :
Out Into Orbit
Discover the relative positions and movements of the bodies of the Solar System, through this presenter-led show based on the current night. Easy-to-see naked-eye objects and common constellations will be pointed out and their relevance to astronomers will be discussed.
Earth, Fun and Moon
Marvel at the nature of the Sun, Earth and Moon through this presenter-led show based on the current night sky. Days, months and years are explained in terms of movements of the Earth and Moon. Easy-to-see naked-eye objects and constellations are pointed out to enable children to continue their exploration of the night sky at home.
A visit to The Dome to see a planetarium show can be supported by new workshops in Lifelab. These include :
Dark Matter – what evidence is there for its existence?
Over 90% of the mass of our universe is in the form of unseen Dark Matter. Determining its nature would solve of the biggest problems in modern cosmology. This workshop will introduce the students to the experimental evidence for its existence. Using real astronomical images students measure the rotational speed of galaxies and hence calculate the mass acting at their centre. They then estimate the mass of the visible stars and calculate the percentage of matter that is visible. Students also estimate the mass of invisible material in clusters of galaxies from arcs of light caused by gravitational lensing of the light from high redshift objects beyond the cluster. The workshop will then consider what form the Dark Matter might take and will draw parallels with the evidence for and acceptance of other theories such as gravitational attraction, the particulate theory of matter, quantum mechanics and relativity.
How do we know that the Universe is changing?
Students look at some of the spectacular deep field images recorded by the Hubble Space Telescope. They then discover how they can use size and spectra to calculate the relative distances and velocities of a number of galaxies. These results are then used to calculate a value for the Hubble parameter and finally to determine a value for the age of the Universe.
What have satellites done for us?
Students undertake exciting activities to review the current capabilities of satellite technology. These include tuning in to satellite radio from distant countries; using handheld GPS to follow a treasure trail in Times Square; making a weather forecast by studying weather satellite pictures and getting a close-up view of their own home. The lab will also include short exercise to consider the ethical issues that arise from the use of the new technology.
How do we know that the Earth is rotating?
Many Science Centres have a Foucault’s pendulum but without some demonstration work with a small turntable, a pendulum on a stand and a small manikin, the experiment is incomprehensible to most students. With the appropriate background in place, setting up a giant pendulum then watching it appear to move is a eureka moment.
How do we know that the Earth is rotating?
Many Science Centres have a Foucault’s pendulum but without some demonstration work with a small turntable, a pendulum on a stand and a small manikin, the experiment is incomprehensible to most students. With the appropriate background in place, setting up a giant pendulum then watching it appear to move is a eureka moment.
