Planet Model 1: 50 Billion

Abstract

Galileo’s and Marius’s telescopic observations are simulated by a model at a scale of 1:50 billion. It is one of several hands-on exhibits that were built for a mobile exhibit about the history of astronomy in a school project.

Jupiter and his moons are observed through a telescope from the position of the earth, i.e., from a distance of 13 m. The celestial bodies, especially the small moons (0.06 mm in diameter), are represented by holes in construction paper, engraved by a laser cutter. They are illuminated from behind. The exhibits show the constellations during some historic nights following the 7th of January 1610 that led to the conclusion of orbiting satellites.