National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ) - 4D2U Dome Theater

Public shows at National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ) - 4D2U Dome Theater: Yes

Free public 4D2U screenings by advance reservation (monthly); campus open for self-guided tours. Check the official site for the current schedule and tickets before you go.

A planetarium show is the one astronomy outing that clouds and city lights cannot cancel. Most public shows run 30 to 50 minutes; live shows, where a presenter flies the sky to tonight's planets and constellations, are the best preparation for a night at a dark site. Shows often sell out on weekends and school holidays.

2-21-1 Ohsawa, Mitaka, Tokyo, Japan 181-8588. Phone +81 422-34-3688.

National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ) - 4D2U Dome Theater has a 10 m (33 ft) dome and 40 seats

That makes it a small dome, typical of schools, colleges and portable shows. The largest planetarium domes in the world are about 35 m across; a classroom dome is 5 to 8 m.

Its projection system is the NAOJ 4D2U custom system, a digital fulldome system that can fly the audience through the solar system as well as show the night sky.

How dark the real sky is outside National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ) - 4D2U Dome Theater

National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ) - 4D2U Dome Theater has no Bortle rating in the list yet. The scale below shows what each class looks like.

Sky brightness and class come from the World Atlas of Artificial Night Sky Brightness (Falchi et al. 2016, CC BY-NC 4.0), with natural skyglow added, at the coordinates below. Planetariums sit in towns, so the dome shows the sky the street outside cannot; the dark sky places nearby show the real one.

National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ) - 4D2U Dome Theater among the planetariums of Japan

Pink dots are planetariums, green dots observatories open to the public, squares dark sky places and diamonds star parties; select one for its page. See Planetariums in Japan for the full list.

The coordinates on this page point to NAOJ Mitaka campus (approximate): 35.675°N, 139.538°E.

Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors. Open the larger map · Directions.

Dark sky places, observatories and clubs near National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ) - 4D2U Dome Theater

Nearest dark sky places

Observatories open to the public within 150 km

• National Astronomical Observatory of JapanMitaka, Tokyo, Japan, 0 km (0 mi). Mitaka campus open daily for a free self-guided historic-telescope tour; regular stargazing evenings by lottery
• National Astronomical Observatory of JapanMitaka, Tokyo, Japan, 0 km (0 mi). Mitaka campus open daily 10 am-5 pm, free; solar observation weekends; regular stargazing open course
• Gekko ObservatoryKannami, Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan, 79 km (49 mi). Open 9:30 am-5 pm, closed Mondays and 4th Tuesday; adults 1200 yen incl. planetarium
• Usuda Star DomeSaku, Nagano, Japan, 112 km (70 mi). Public night viewing with 60cm reflector on open days; beginner astrophotography classes
• Usuda Star DomeSaku, Nagano, Japan, 115 km (72 mi). Public viewing through large telescope, 10 am-10 pm

Astronomy clubs within 150 km

• Astronomical Society of JapanMitaka, Japan, 2 km (1 mi)

Other planetariums within 150 km

• Tamarokuto Science CenterNishitokyo, Tokyo, Japan, 7 km (4 mi), 28.0 m dome
• Kawasaki Municipal Science Museum (Kawasaki Sora to Midori no Kagakukan)Kawasaki, Kanagawa, Japan, 8 km (5 mi), 18.0 m dome
• Benesse Star DomeTama, Tokyo, Japan, 12 km (7 mi), 12.0 m dome
• Nakano ZERO Planetarium (Momijiyama Culture Center)Nakano, Tokyo, Japan, 12 km (8 mi), 15.0 m dome
• NIPR Polar Science Museum (Antarctic and Arctic Science Museum)Tachikawa, Tokyo, Japan, 13 km (8 mi), 4.0 m dome

National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ) - 4D2U Dome Theater record

From the site's planetariums dataset (planetariumsglobal_q426). Distances are computed from the coordinates.