Birla Planetarium, Kolkata

About Birla Planetarium

Birla Planetarium is one of the famous places in Kolkata, this planetarium is counted as the second largest planetarium in the world and the largest in Asia. The planetarium is close to the Victoria Memorial and St. Paul's Cathedral. The design of this planetarium is based on the Stupa at Sanchi, which was inaugurated on 2 July 1963 by the then Prime Minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru.

Birla Planetarium regularly organizes shows every day in various languages including Hindi, English, Bengali and other local dialects. Many tourists come here every day to enjoy the show and visit the planetarium.

Architecture of Birla Planetarium

The planetarium is a single-storey circular structure designed in a typical Indian style, with its architecture loosely modeled on the Buddhist Stupa at Sanchi. The dome of the planetarium is of splendid 23-meter diameter AstroTec (USA), made of high precision aluminium and can seat 688 visitors at one time.

Interesting facts about Birla Planetarium

1. The planetarium can accommodate 500 people at a time.
2. Birla Planetarium has an astronomical observatory equipped with Celestron-14 telescope with various accessories like ST6 CCD camera and solar filter.
3. It offers more than 100 astronomical projects to the public and students.
4. Pillars have been allotted in the periphery of the planetarium which give it the form of a mini colosseum.
5. There are about 570 push back progressively inclined seats for ultimate comfort of the spectators.
6. Birla Planetarium is an ideal destination for science explorers, information seekers and explorers.

How to reach Birla Planetarium