On September 6, 1975 in Smolyan opened the largest Planetarium with astronomical observatory in Bulgaria. Smolyan is a tourist centre in the Western Rhodopes and lies 800 m above sea level, close to the famous winter resort of Pamporovo. The planetarium is one of the most frequently visited attractions in the mountain town. For the past 42 years it has been visited by more than 2 800 000 people.
To promote astronomical knowledge, more than 50 programs (sessions) are presented in the Planetarium’s Star Hall. Among them are: story-telling programmes for the youngest children, many educational sessions, overview and thematic ones for the general public. Foreign guests of the Planetarium are offered programs in foreign languages: Russian, French, German, English, Greek, Turkish. A series of special programs-musical and poetic-complement the variety of stellar performances.
The Planetarium works with students from all forms of Bulgarian school, as well as with preschool children. The Planetarium has developed many curricula related to the material studied in school in astronomy, physics, geography. In addition, groups of students of all ages with a strong interest in astronomy work at the Planetarium throughout the year. They are organized into a Youth Astronomy Club (YAC). Each summer, observing camps are held for IAC members: at the Planetarium for elementary and middle school students and on the grounds of the National Astronomical Observatory for high school students. The Youth Astronomy Club observes visually and photographically astronomical phenomena such as: lunar and solar eclipses, conjunctions, passages, meteors, solar activity.
The planetarium also works with physics and geography students, as well as physics and astronomy teachers from the region. Many methodological materials have been developed for them and practical workshops are organised.
Research activities depend on the available facilities. A daily solar patrol has been carried out here for more than 30 years. Photographs are taken of sunspots, the only visible manifestation of solar activity. Since 1990, the Planetarium has been working in cooperation with the Sunspot Index Data Centre in Brussels. Sunspot observations are sent there every month.
The Planetarium is also active in the visual and photographic documentation of all lunar and solar eclipses and other interesting astronomical phenomena visible from our country. Since 1975, 7 solar and 15 lunar eclipses have been photographed at the Planetarium. Some of the photographs are unique for Bulgaria.
A considerable amount of archival material has been collected. Specialists at the Planetarium study the astronomical ideas of the elderly population of the Rhodope region. During its more than 40 years of existence, the Planetarium in Smolyan has established itself with its own specific style of work and gained recognition at home and abroad. Since January 1, 1995 the Planetarium has been a member of the Planetary Community based in Pasadena, California, USA – the world’s largest non-governmental organization for space research, and since 2005 it has been among the 100 national tourist sites, number 83.
Member Since 2023
