BY RALPH SHUPING

Visiting the UCLA planetarium for the first time is a dramatic and thought-provoking experience for most people: You walk through a curving, light-trapping hallway to a large, white-domed room. Settling into one of the chairs, you examine the bizarre-looking star projector. As the lights come down, the stars come up, and you are taken on a 45-minute tour of our solar system and the galaxy beyond. It's hard not to leave with a sense of wonder and a desire to explore the night sky.

The UCLA planetarium, installed by the Department of Physics and Astronomy in 1972, is just one of a handful of remaining planetaria in the Los Angeles area. Fifty seats surround the Viewlex Mark IIA projector, which casts the stars and planets onto a curved white dome 20 feet overhead. Additional images are displayed on the dome using a slide projector. In the late 1990s, a prototype laser projection system was built and installed in the dome by the engineering department. For a few years, this system was used for spectacular light shows set to contemporary music.

With the Griffith Observatory Planetarium closed for renovations, people on and outside of campus have been discovering the UCLA planetarium, where a visit is an easy way to escape the lights of L.A. and take a tour among the stars. Free planetarium shows are given every Wednesday night in conjunction with public telescope viewing on the roof of the Math Sciences Building. (For information, see: www.astro.ucla.edu/planetarium.)

This is a fantastic time for anyone to become acquainted (or re-acquainted) with the night sky and discuss recent discoveries in astronomy with researchers and students.

School classes and other small groups can also reserve the planetarium for special shows. The planetarium is a fantastic educational tool for kids of all ages -- it is a captivating and fun environment in which students learn about the night sky, astronomy and science in general. Some astronomical concepts can only be fully realized through realistic observation. More importantly, kids are fascinated by black holes, extrasolar planets, the birth and ultimate fate of the universe, and the possibility of life elsewhere. A trip to the planetarium gives children a chance to explore this fascination in a way that cannot be duplicated by books, television or film.

The physics and astronomy department is currently planning to upgrade the planetarium in a number of significant ways. A devoted committee of undergraduates, graduates, postdocs, staff and faculty has begun making improvements. Already the dome's interior has been repainted. Aging components in the control console will be replaced, and a computer projector will be purchased to incorporate multimedia presentations into the shows.

The group is also working closely with the Tau Beta Pi Laserama Committee to repair and reinstall hardware for laser light shows. Finally, the committee is looking for additional resources to obtain a modern sky projection system to replace the current projector (now 30 years old). Private support from the UCLA community, and from alumni and friends, is critical to make all of these improvements possible.

Shuping is a postdoctoral researcher in astronomy and a member of the planetarium improvement committee.