Griffith Observatory Public Reopening
by Pedro Rodriguez
Since Los Angeles is the land of a million voices, there was a wide array of opinions on the Griffith Observatory reopening earlier this month. Some believed stated that everyone in the City of Angels was looking forward to looking up towards the stars again; other voices said that no one in LA really knew that the observatory ever closed, nor did they care about it reopening. As for myself, the observatory was one of those few places enjoyed going to whenever I wanted to be alone. The renovation came as a surprise; apparently I didn't get the memo, and I found out when I drove up narrow Observatory Ave, and found a fence blocking the entrance. After that, there was very little news about what was going on up there, or when it would be reopened. Then when an official date was announced, I looked over the new layout, and began to speculate about how much of what I used to enjoy was still there, and I was hopeful in seeing some improvements as well. One month later, I printed out my ticket, grabbed my camera, and headed to the shuttle stop.
As I first approached the observatory there didn't seem to be much of a difference. The old green shack (where I used to get my Danish and ICEE) is gone now; it has been replaced by new newly built restroom. Many of the trees that covered the west side of the grounds had been cut down, making it much more easier to see the Hollywood sign that sits upon MT. Lee and everything west of Normandie. As I walked past Copernicus and company, I came to notice rings along the walkways towards the observatory. These rings were part of a scale model of our Solar System. Each ring represented the orbits of all the planets that revolve around the sun (Pluto included). Looking back, I really didn't know what surprised me more, the fact that they manage to build a scale model of the Solar System using only the front lawn, or the fact that all the inner planets had to be so close to each other to make it all work. Moving west towards the now glass barricades, there were now markers that show where the sun will set in a seasonal Solstice or Equinox. The telescopes are gone, that is to say, there used to be a set of telescopes aimed towards the west end of the LA Basin. In their last days of operation, only one of them really worked (and it was free). Now all of them are gone, and will be missed.
Going inside through the main entrance it didn't seem like much had changed either. The Pendulum in the main entrance was still there (the one that proves that the earth does turn on its axis, and is not the center of the universe); Mr. Griffith's portrait was still there to welcome you, and the mural on the ceiling looks like it's been given a face lift. The East and West Wing changed a little bit. The Sun instruments are still permanently where they were before. The old exhibits in the West Hallway had been replaced by a collection of models that show how the Sun and Moon affect our lives - day/night, seasons, tides, eclipse. Tesla's Coil had been moved to the East Hallway, and there was also a display on the history of Astronomy meant for kids - or adults without weak backs.
The Planetarium's lobby (now the Samuel Oschin Planetarium) no longer had any of the old models including gravity well, or the weight scales for different planets. While I didn't go into the Planetarium itself, I heard that there are fewer seats than before, and that they are all quite more convenient. Following a new set of stairs in the lobby I eventually came across a curved ramp going down. On the left hand side of said ramp, there was a long collection of jewelry. Apparently the jewlery is meant to represent the timeline of our Universe from the Big Bang, to present day; while I knew about the timeline beforehand, it never crossed my mind that this is what it was - I wonder how many other visitors had any idea that day.
Moving on, at the bottom of the decline was the probably the biggest (if not most impressive), part of the renovation. It's a room; a very large room with a very large collection of images on porcelain tiles called "The Big Picture", and the idea behind it was like something out of a kid astronomer's fantasy. A telescope had always been used to magnify one's vision so that far away objects appear bigger - no brainer. Taking that logic, Astronomers took a portion of the Virgo Cluster (one that can be seen between your thumb and index finger), and zoomed in on it to the point that it now covers a wall over two stories high, and just over 50 yards long. Keeping the pictures company, was a bronze statue of Albert Einstein sitting on a bench doing what else - holding his index and thumb in front of his line of sight. The planets were all moved here as well (including Pluto). Underneath each planet is details of each planet and how they relate to ours. There was also a weight scale on the ground that showed how much you would've weigh in each planet. The scales were a bit more vague in numbers, and didn't seem as sensitive as the old ones. The seismograph has also been moved down here; it appears to work just fine as the earthquake measured earlier in the day proves.
It was nice to see the old place again, even if some of the things I was fond of are gone. I am going to miss being able to park there on a cold winter night after a rainstorm. Hopefully the crowd will be small enough next winter that I can do so. I was really impressed by how much the observatory has improved, even with the list of things not finished or working. Well Los Angeles, love it or leave it, the observatory is back again.
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