Bryan-Gooding Planetarium in the Alexander Brest Science Theatre is a planetarium in the Museum of Science and History in Jacksonville, Florida, U.S. It was built in 1988 and featured a 60-foot-diameter (18 m) dome-shaped projection screen, JBL stereo sound system, and a Zeiss Jena Optical mechanical planetarium star projector. The facility has seating for 200, and approximately 60,000 people see a planetarium show each year.[1]
The planetarium was built with a donation by the late Alexander Brest, and was originally known as the Alexander Brest Planetarium. The theater initially used the Dove X / DORK automation system for slide projectors and special effects projectors. In 1996, the automation system was upgraded to the JHE automation system. The star projector (Planetarium) was built by a German company named Carl Zeiss AG, and was capable of displaying 8,900 stars. The projector used two 500-watt lamps at each end of the projector.
Michael Reynolds was the first planetarium director who designed the first planetarium programs which included a lecture series, workshops for teachers and a seminar about telescope makers.[2]