270 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 195 7 



After World War II, the trustees of the Museum purchased the 

 outstanding bonds, in part with a donation from the Hayden Foun- 

 dation. The Planetarium Authority is still responsible for retiring 

 the remaining substantial debt. 



The breadth of the program in New York is of special interest. 

 The popular demonstration attracted over 600,000 in the fiscal year 

 ended June 30, 1957. These people witnessed one of seven annual 

 presentations, such as: "Earth, Air and Space," "Captives of the 

 Sun," "The Christmas Star," "From Dusk to Dawn," "Time and 

 the Stars," "Easter in the Heavens," and "A Trip to Palomar." 

 A similar pattern of change in the popular offering is also character- 

 istic of other American planetariums. 



The American Museum-Hayden Planetarium offers courses in as- 

 tronomy, navigation, and meteorology. These range from a Saturday 

 morning course for young people to graduate courses for credit in 

 cooperation with local colleges and universities. The series of courses 

 in navigation (piloting, introduction to celestial navigation, advanced 

 celestial navigation) has been especially well received. 



Special demonstrations are given to about 20 local colleges as a 

 supplement to their instruction in descriptive astronomy. This may 

 consist of a single lecture annually or a series each semester. In 

 every instance, efforts are directed toward satisfying the needs of 

 the students involved after consultation between a Planetarium staff 

 member and the college instructor. 



Lectures are given weekly to students from the junior high schools 

 of the City of New York. Other lectures are prepared for special 

 groups. 



To handle this extensive program, there is a staff of two astrono- 

 mers (one of whom is chairman), two associate astronomers, two 

 assistant astronomers, five special lecturers, and six instructors (these 

 last two categories are part-time), and a supporting group of 

 about 35 full-time employees. 



BUHL PLANETARIUM AND INSTITUTE OF POPULAR SCIENCE 



In 1939, the Buhl Planetarium and Institute of Popular Science 

 was opened. Dr. Charles F. Lewis, director of the Buhl Foundation, 

 in his address of presentation stated the reasons for establishing 

 the new institution in Pittsburgh with great clarity and directness: 



Why, it may be asked, should there be a planetarium? I will give you two 

 reasons, either one of which I believe justifies the expenditure of funds and 

 effort. 



First, I believe that the oldest curiosity of man was about the stars ; and I 

 believe that this curiosity is infinitely worth satisfying. The heavens them- 



