About C of I

Whittenberger Planetarium

The College of Idaho, established in 1891 and Idaho’s first private institution of higher learning, was founded by William Judson Boone. W. J. Boone was a Presbyterian minister, educator, and an avid naturalist. As such, it seemed a natural thing to name the new science building in his honor in 1970. The planetarium, intended to be used as an educational tool in college classes, was included in the design of the building. The transition to using it as a community outreach facility came about quickly and naturally. In the fall of 1981, it was dedicated as the Whittenberger Planetarium in memory of Ethel and Claude Whittenberger coinciding with the receipt of a Whittenberger grant that allowed some upgrades in the planetarium. In 1991, The College of Idaho was renamed Albertson College of Idaho.

Facilities

The projector sits under a 24-foot dome with seating for 50 people. The projector can show northern and limited southern constellations, all planets visible to the unaided eye, the sun, moon, and both nightly and annual motions of all of the above. The sky can be viewed from different locations and times on Earth. Several specialized projectors are very helpful in demonstrating daily and seasonal changes visible in the night sky. Two slide projectors and a large collection of slides add to the educational opportunities and experiences offered during shows.

Purpose

The planetarium serves as a community outreach tool in a number of ways with public, private, and homeschool school fieldtrips making up the bulk of the annual shows given in the planetarium. Scout and church groups regularly schedule shows as well. In addition to these, a monthly show is offered to the public during the academic year and National Astronomy Day activities are offered annually. Various college classes and organizations use the planetarium as needed.

Programs

Tonight’s Night Sky. These shows are based on that particular evening’s skies and current events. Topics may include current events, constellation identification and stories, planetary movement, and deep space objects.

Because of the informal nature of the presentations, each show tends to be unique and geared toward the topics of particular interest to the audience based on their studies at school and/or their questions during the show.

Public Shows. Shows are offered to the public one evening per month during the fall, winter, and spring school terms. Because of limited seating reservations are required and can be made by calling JoAnn Bellon at 459-5211.

National Astronomy Day. This day changes annually based on the Saturday of best projected viewing every spring. Activities begin early evening followed by planetarium shows designed specifically to teach how to read a star chart and, when clear skies are present, culminate with outdoor viewing through telescopes. These activities are free to public.

Planetarium Personnel

Director Amy Truksa has been the director of the Whittenberger Planetarium since the fall of 2000. An alumna of the college, she earned her B.S. in Biology and a minor in the natural sciences 1989. In 1992 she graduated from Oregon State University with a Master of Arts in Teaching degree. Her job as director includes show planning, writing, presenting, and planetarium maintenance. She also delivers the StarLab, a portable planetarium, to schools and leads teacher in-service programs as requested.

Administrative Assistant JoAnn Bellon is the administrative assistant in Boone Hall. She books shows, gets travel information as needed to those attending, and assists with advertising.

Faculty Support Dr. Jim Dull is an associate professor of physics. On occasion he performs shows, but primarily he assists with National Astronomy Day activities, acts as the faculty supervisor to the astronomy club, works on funding for the planetarium, and is the liaison between the school and the Idaho Space Grant Consortium.