Cusco Planetarium — Attraction in Distrito de Cusco

This presentation isn’t more about what’s new in astronomy today, but about what the Inca and sailors knew in the past and how they navigated and how they told the time of year…. I saw the one in Nazca and loved how it tied everything together so I came here in hopes of understanding more of the significance and function of the Inca ruins and look for parallels in other cultures.

I was grateful to learn how the different astrological signs were used to tell the time of the year, more ways the Inca were able to tell when it Winter Solstice for farming or El Niño and the possible meaning of the placement of the llamas in a temple… Also I didn’t know much about the sky of the Southern Hemisphere so that was a nice introduction to the stars explorers sailing south yet. I had no idea we had constellations naked after navigational tools…

The staff was very kind and gave us blankets and despite the sky being covered in clouds, they kept trying and showed us a nebula, two double star systems, Saturn and its rings, the moon’s craters, many stars and more

I don’t understand the poor reviews I saw last week, but often I’m pleasantly surprised afterwards and that’s what happened again… but the reviews I saw made me joke like, “like why can’t they control the clouds or the cold?” I suppose we have to decipher when it’s a bad moment for someone or elements beyond...

Definitely one of the best things we did in Cusco.

So I'm used to the Montreal planetarium, with its two domes and exhibitions, and I ever fairly remember the older planetarium back when it was downtown and I was still a little child. That's all pretty cool...

...but not as cool as learning cosmology and astronomy through the lens of Incas and pre-inca civilizations, and certainly not as cool as stargazing in the southern hemisphere under a clear sky and with hi-tech telescopes. The part under the dome was also super entertaining. The animator was funny, and I learned a great deal about constellations, including those we don't hear much about up north.

It was also so cool to get picked up by car in the late afternoon and drive to the Planetarium, a bit outside the city and almost in the wilderness.

This Planetarium receives no funding from governments (or from Aluminum companies like the one in Montreal), so please support this great DIY project! I bought the book on Inca cosmology at the gift...

An awesome experience (offered in both English and Spanish) that really showcases the passion and enthusiasm for local astronomy. Our group lucked out and had somewhat clear skies, allowing us to take a peek through their larger telescopes. The dome experience is fun, and while intimate, gives a great basic overview of the constellations.

If I were to make a few recommendations: For their diameter, it felt like the objects we viewed through their telescopes could have been magnified significantly more The projector used in the dome felt like it needed to be brighter and higher resolution, as some of the scenes were washed out despite the darkness I would have enjoyed more information about detailed Incan astronomy and their methods for observing and recording the stars in particular You can in fact pay with credit card, though this info isn't provided anywhere obvious (they understandably prefer people pay with cash, so please do...