HRH Princess Haya Bint Al Hussein Officially Opens Dubai Planetarium

Jan. 28, 2009 - PRLog -- Following the completion of a Global Immersion fulldome digital upgrade in October 2008, Her Royal Highness Princess Haya Bint Al Hussein, wife of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, has officially opened the new Planetarium at the Children’s City Science Center, Dubai. This prestigious event was held on Tuesday 13th January, 2009, to mark the launch of Dubai’s largest and most advanced digital Planetarium.

Following the demonstration of the Planetarium system, Her Royal Highness commended the use of non-traditional tools and technology for the education of children; enhancing their creativity, imagination and skill development. Princess Haya’s ongoing involvement with, and support of, creative educational programs have sought to supply a high-standard of education for the youth of Dubai, initiating a number of educational projects that work toward a goal of developing creative and leadership qualities among the younger generation.

Martin Howe, CEO of Global Immersion attended the opening event and commented, “It’s fantastic that the fast-growing medium of digital fulldome is being recognized and acknowledged for its capabilities. It’s crucial that we exploit the latest technologies to encourage and increase interactive learning as a highly effective method of education.”

The six-channel Fidelity Bright system was used to demonstrate “Dark Star Adventure” and “Oasis in Space” fulldome productions from Spitz Inc. following a tour of the ‘Space Zone’ at the Science Center. The 13.4 meter (44-feet), 102-seat Planetarium was equipped with a full Global Immersion immersive theater solution including theater management and content storage facilities in October 2008. Uniquely, the system was installed entirely by Planetarium staff following training at the Global Immersion UK office.

A Spokesperson for Dubai Municipality and Children’s City added “Her Royal Highness Princess Haya was very impressed with our new Planetarium and its ability to communicate strikingly detailed and accurate visuals to the audience. The system performance is excellent; bright and colorful with exceptional black levels and channel blending. Because of the meticulous planning, preparation and unlimited support from Global Immersion, the installation was cost-effective, completed on schedule and now requires minimal
ongoing maintenance.”

Howe continued, “Not only has this been a great project for developing our presence within the Middle East, but it has also been testament to our ethos and credibility. The installation of the system by the Children’s City team has been carried out to such a high standard that it really reflects the robustness and stability of our solutions – we’re pleased to be able to offer venues a ‘budget-stretching’ solution, simply by allowing them to source their own installation workforce.”

Children’s City was opened under the patronage of H. H. Sheikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, husband of Princess Haya, on March 5th 2002. Other attendees at the VIP Planetarium opening event included H.E. Maram Al Roumi, Minister of Social Affairs, Eng. Hussein Lootah, Director General of Dubai Municipality, and a representative of the Minister of Education, Rashid Al-Nuaimi.
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About Children’s City

The Dubai-based Children's City is the first educational city in the UAE devoted to children between two and fifteen years old and allows young people to investigate, explore, play, discover, and learn about the world in which we live. The City is especially designed for children to interact and discover together as a family and within school groups. The center has several exhibits and programs focussing on applied sciences, nature, space exploration, human body, local and international culture, as well as a ‘children-under-five corner’ and a planetarium.

About Global Immersion

With over ten years experience in the world of fulldome displays and scientific data visualisation, Global Immersion combines a broad range of proven technologies to create enthralling and exciting immersive theater. As a full-service team, they pull together exceptional theater design, advanced projection technologies, content production, user-friendly controls and advanced audio & lighting – all on a digital infrastructure.

Fidelity Bright is a trademark of Global Immersion Ltd

PRESS ENQUIRIES:
Beth Nicholas, Marketing Manager: beth.nicholas@globalimmersion.com | 0203 004 6541

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Global Immersion is a full service immersive theater design and installation organization, integrating and developing fulldome cinema and large-format immersive theater, creating an effective and advanced means of educating and entertaining the public.