THE LATEST INFO.

DESIGN PICTURES
 
Jan - March 2012
Construction wraps up.  Punchlist items are addressed.  Grand Opening scheduled for March 9th.

Nov/Dec 2011
Most of the technology package is installed.  Electrical work continues.  Seats and carpeting goes in.  Landscaping and exterior work continues.

September/October 2011
The dome has been installed.  Bathrooms are finished.  The elevator installation is complete and work on the exterior sidewalks is finished.

July/August 2011
The interior of the planetarium is coming together.  Drywall is up and painting is underway.   Work inside the theater continues.  The exterior of the building has been covered with stucco and brick veneer and is nearly finished.

June 2011
The concrete work inside the theater is now finished.  Framing is nearly complete and an outer sheeting is going up on the exterior.  Installation of the stainless steel tiles on the tower is nearly complete. Installation of utility pipes and conduit inside of the building is finishing up.

May 2011
Work continues inside the planetarium theater.  Concrete was poured creating the seating slab, stairs, mezzanine level, and landing.  Framing work continues inside and outside.  The tower is framed and being sheeted.

March/April 2011
 The steel structure is in place.   Work continues inside the theater with installation of HVAC and electrical. 
Jan/Feb 2011
 Concrete for footers and the foundation was poured.

Nov/Dec 2010
 Trenching and installation of underground utility and sewer lines has occupied most of the last two months.

September 2010
 Work on a western retaining wall has been the main focus of this month.

May 26th, 2010
The groundbreaking ceremony was a success.  Barring any delays, the construction phase should take approximately 18 months.
 
The new planetarium for Palomar College.


The architecture firm for this project was tBP Architecture.  Click the image for more information and a portfolio of some of their work.

  


Construction Management for this project was provided by Swinerton.
 
 

Bowen Technovation was one of the lead technology partners on this project.

  CURRENT CONSTRUCTION
HAPPENINGS

3/9/2012
The construction of the new planetarium is now complete!
Construction Walkthrough Video 12/13/11
  

 More construction videos are available!
Visit our channel




The New Planetarium seats 142 people and has a full-dome projection system.
more images here...

The New Planetarium location is between the Natural Science building and the Library.
more images here...
The Final Construction
Site Image
 (updated 2/16/12)
CLICK ON THE THUMBNAIL FOR A LARGER IMAGE
 CLICK HERE for an archive of construction site images
UPDATED!
CLICK HERE for a full size (slower) time-lapse sequence of the planetarium construction so far.
(Be patient, it is a 12MB file)

Read the
Planetarium Construction Blog
 
 [Descriptions, images, and videos of construction can be found here] 
 
CLICK HERE FOR A DETAILED SUMMARY OF THE PROGRESS
SO FAR 
CLICK HERE FOR A GENERAL TIMELINE OF THE PROJECT
   
4.14.08