[Chaos-l] Homestar Pro Planetarium

[Mark South]

I've really enjoyed this planetarium especially in cloudy nights.  I  
can't help gasp and say 'wow' everytime I turn the power on.  It  
projects over 10,000 stars on the ceiling and the milky way is gorgeous.

The downside is the internal rotation of a full 24 hours that actually  
happens in a 12 minute span.  The "belt" gets stuck or off from time  
to time and you have to open it up to fix it.  That is tedious and  
takes some time b/c of the small parts.

Overall I love it.  It's not the zeiss at MPSC by a longshot.  I think  
they have come out with a 2nd ed.  The only place to get it is in  
Japan @ www.japantrendshop.com
Mark

Sent from my cell

On May 24, 2009, at 4:46 PM, Michael Hrivnak <mhrivnak at hrivnak.org>  
wrote:

> Any updated experience with this product? I have a friend interested  
> in purchasing one.
> Thanks,
> Michael
> On Friday 28 November 2008 19:32:21 Mark South wrote:
> > Rumor has it I may get this as a gift from someone special...
> > If I do, l'll give a report!
> > This is very popular in Japan from what I hear.
> > also 1 test showed this was nice in a small dome projecting to the
> > horizon, but not in large domes
> > Thanks for the info Richard!
> >
> > Mark D. South
> > http://web.mac.com/md_south
> > Sent from my cell phone
> >
> > On Nov 28, 2008, at 5:43 PM, Richard McColman
> >
> > <rmccolman at mindspring.com> wrote:
> > > My understanding is that HomeStar and HomeStar Pro are for a flat
> > > ceiling, not a dome.
> > >
> > > The reviews I've read were very favorable on the HomeStar. The  
> only
> > > in-depth review on the HomeStar Pro model indicated that some of  
> its
> > > projection is actually not quite as good as the standard HomeStar.
> > >
> > > I haven't actually seen the HomeStar, but have considered getting
> > > one. BTW, this is put out by the same Japanese company that's
> > > created the new MegaStar (one million stars!) projector for
> > > planetariums. Mickey and I saw the MegaStar demonstrated at the
> > > International Planetarium Society conference in Chicago this past
> > > summer, and I was astounded by it! The star field on the MegaStar
> > > completely blows away our Zeiss star field in my estimation -- the
> > > Milky Way for instance, is composed of individual stars, not an
> > > overall cloudy haze like from our Zeiss. (You can look at the  
> Milky
> > > Way with binoculars -- which we did -- and see the individual  
> stars,
> > > just like in the real Milky Way.) The Milky Way, therefore, has
> > > incredible depth, visually. Aside from the MW, the individual  
> stars
> > > are very point-like, including the 1st-mag stars, which on our  
> Zeiss
> > > look like small disks. Good news on Megastar is that it's only
> > > about the size of a single beachball, and it costs only about 1/10
> > > or less that of a new replacement Zeiss. The bad news is that
> > > planets aren't included -- at least in that price. I think there's
> > > an assumption that the planets would be projected digitally. My
> > > assumption is that, for opto-mechanical planetarium lovers, the  
> star
> > > quality coupled with price will make this the one to go for. I can
> > > see the other planetarium manufacturers quaking in their boots.
> > >
> > > If you get a HomeStar or HomeStar Pro, I'd be very interested in
> > > seeing it -- that is if I don't get one of my own first.
> > >
> > > Richard McColman
> > > Morehead Planetarium & Science Center
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > -----Original Message-----
> > >
> > >> From: Robert Nielsen <robertnielsen at nc.rr.com>
> > >> Sent: Nov 27, 2008 10:53 AM
> > >> To: Chapel Hill Astronomical Observation Society <chaos-l at rtpnet.org 
> >
> > >> Subject: Re: [Chaos-l] Homestar Pro Planetarium
> > >>
> > >> I wonder how accurate this thing is ... does it assume a flat  
> ceiling
> > >> (which I guess makes sense) ... or do you need like a dome?
> > >>
> > >> Robert
> > >>
> > >> Mark South wrote:
> > >>> There's a home planetarium that is a Japanese import only  
> called the
> > >>> Homestar Pro. Pretty cool. The Homestar standard is now in the
> > >>> states. Has anyone every seen this? It projects over 10,000
> > >>> stars on
> > >>> your ceiling.
> > >>>
> > >>> Don't worry, Mickey, this could never replace the grand  
> Zeiss!!!!
> > >>>
> > >>> Click here for the Homestar Pro!
> > >>> <http://www.japantrendshop.com/homestar-pro-home-planetarium-sega-toys-
> > >>>p-28.html
> > >>>
> > >>>
> > >>> -- Happy Thanksgiving!
> > >>> Mark South
> > >>> ---
> > >>> ---
> > >>>  
> ------------------------------------------------------------------
> > >>>
> > >>> _______________________________________________
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