Ancient Star Maps
Aerospace · Interactive
- DimensionsSubject to on-site plan
- PresentationInteractive
- PricingQuoted by manufacture spec
Ancient Star Maps is a hands-on, mechanical & electromechanical interactive exhibit manufactured by Hefei Panda for science centers, children’s museums, discovery centers, STEM learning centers and family entertainment centers. Engineered for durable, robust, low-maintenance, high-traffic gallery installation, it turns abstract scientific concepts into direct, interactive visitor exploration. Hefei Panda is a global exhibit manufacturer exporting hands-on science displays to 50+ countries, with in-house engineering, fabrication, installation and commissioning.
Exhibit Summary
Ancient Star Maps is a Interactive interactive exhibit in the Aerospace category, designed for science centers, children’s museums, discovery centers, STEM learning centers and family entertainment centers. Built as a hands-on, mechanical & electromechanical display, it turns an abstract scientific concept into direct, interactive visitor exploration, and is engineered for durable, low-maintenance, high-traffic gallery use.
Scientific Principle
By touching the sky-viewing records, the audience can grasp the concept and significance of star maps, grasp the knowledge and stories behind the classic star maps of China and other countries, and the unremitting efforts of ancient people to explore the sky, inspiring the audience's spirit of exploration.
Operation
(1) Suzhou Stone Stele Star Chart: The Suzhou Stone Stele Astronomical Chart is the oldest existing all-sky stone star chart in the world based on actual measurements. It was observed in the Yuanfeng period of the Northern Song Dynasty (1078 to 1085), and was carved in 1247 of the Southern Song Dynasty. This star map was drawn by Huang Shang in the Southern Song Dynasty. Huang Shang was once selected as the teacher of Zhao Kuo, the crown prince of the Southern Song Dynasty. In order to teach astronomy and geography to the crown prince, he drew eight astronomical and geographical maps, and this star map is one of them. Later, Wang Zhiyuan, a native of Yongjia, Zhejiang, carved this star map on a stone tablet and kept it in the Suzhou Confucian Temple. More than two hundred years later, people were worried that the star map would be lost over time, so they carved a new one. This is the Changshu Stone Carved Astronomical Map, which is preserved in Changshu County, Jiangsu Province. (2) Dunhuang Star Map: The Dunhuang Star Map is now stored in the British Museum in London. It is an ancient star map discovered in the Dunhuang Scriptures. It is one of the oldest existing ancient star charts in the world with a larger number of stars. It is the world's earliest star map. It was probably painted during the Zhongzong period of the Tang Dynasty (705-710 AD). (3) Uranometria: Uranometria (German: Uranometria) is the short title of the star atlas published by German astronomer Johann Bayer. The celestial map was published in 1603 in Augsburg, today's Germany. The celestial map was the first star map to include the entire celestial sphere. (4) Almagest: an encyclopedia of astronomy and mathematics compiled by the Greek astronomer Ptolemy around 140 AD. It was the basic guide for Arab and European astronomers until the early 17th century. It was translated into Arabic in 827, and then translated from Arabic into Latin in the second half of the 12th century. (5) "De Revolutionibus Orbium Coelestium" (De Revolutionibus Orbium Coelestium): It is a six-volume work about his own astronomical theory written by the Polish astronomer Copernicus. It was finally revised and completed in 1535. Without telescopes in ancient times, how could people look up at the stars? The ancients used paper and pen to record everything they saw with the naked eye, using small circles or identical dots with connected lines to represent star officials and constellations to draw a "map of the stars" - a star map.
Export-Ready Features
- Durable, robust construction for high-traffic gallery environments
- Low-maintenance electromechanical design with reliable, safe components
- Custom sizing, theming & multilingual labeling available
- OEM & turnkey exhibit solutions with full project management
- Overseas shipping, export documentation & on-site installation supported
- Shipped to science centers and museums in 50+ countries