KYLE M. JOHNSON
STAFF WRITER

Construction is currently underway at Palomar College as a new planetarium is being built to replace the former planetarium, which was demolished in 2008.

The presence of the new building, which will be located in a different area of the school than the previous one, will lead to an expansion of the Palomar campus.

According to the webpage for the new Palomar College Planetarium, funds received from the passing of Proposition M in 2006 have allowed this development to take place. The webpage describes the planetarium as new, larger and state-of-the-art, open to the college and the general public.

The webpage also features a New Planetarium Construction Blog, which features descriptions, photographs and videos depicting the construction taking place. In the blog posts, it is revealed that the planetarium will possess such features as a 50-foot dome, 142 seats and a Digistar 4 projection system with surround sound and LED lights.

According to “The Starry Messenger,” Palomar’s official planetarium newsletter, the new planetarium will offer shows to the public regularly, guided tours of the current night sky and topical shows about popular subjects of astronomy.

The most recent developments to take place at the construction site have been associated with landscaping, carpet installation, fire-life-safety work and audiovisual technology.

The grand opening of the planetarium is scheduled for early March 2012.