Jena, the city where the projection planetarium was born, along with Berlin, the city of reunification, are thrilled to invite you to IPS 2024! After six long years apart, we are excited to finally have an in person IPS conference once again. And not just any conference – the centennial conference! We believe the conference will be a wonderful opportunity for all delegates to learn, network and grow as planetarians. It will also be an opportunity to discover Europe, celebrate in the country where our profession was born, and to work together to guide us forward into the next 100 years.

United Under the Sky: a program with something for everyone

Planetariums have transformed into palaces of wonder, knowledge, and even entertainment over the last 100 years. They are a place where everyone is welcome to marvel at the sky and our universe (and even other subjects like the human body and aquatic life). It doesn’t matter who you are, where you are from, what you look like, and what you believe; the sky belongs to everyone.

During the IPS 2024 Conference, it is our goal to enable participants to explore new and different ways to work together. Naturally, we will continue to learn about best practices and new technology. However, we want everyone in our community to be able to branch out and make new connections around the world to create the best programs for our planetarium visitors.

Jena

Berlin

Conference Tours

Arena Berlin

The central location, or home base, of the conference in Berlin is planned to be at the Arena Berlin. The historic site dates back to its days serving Berlin public transportation in the 1920s. Located on the beautiful Spree River, not far from the famous and historic Oberbaumbrücke, Arena Berlin is situated perfectly between all three of the Stiftung Planetarium Berlin sites. Extremely close to the to the S-Bahn, it is an easy train ride to any of the other conference locations in the city. It also has views of the water with pleasant walking paths, a dock for boat tours, and  even a swimming pool aboard a ship.

Sites of the Stiftung Planetarium Berlin

The Stiftung Planetarium Berlin (Berlin Planetarium Foundation) was established on July 1, 2016 and unites the three astronomical facilities of Berlin for the first time in the history of the city.

The houses of the foundation are modern bridges to the cosmos, serving around 400,000 visitors each year. As a joint institution, they are at the top in terms of technology and content and are an essential part of Berlin's educational and cultural offering.

Zeiss-Jena Planetarium and Restaurant Bauersfeld

The Zeiss Planetarium Jena is the world's oldest and longest serving large planetarium, opening its doors to the public on July 18, 1926. The 23-meter dome with 260 seats boasts the beautiful skies of both its opto-mechanical projector and its beautiful new fulldome system. When not enjoying programs in the dome, guests can enjoy visiting with each other in the Bauersfield Restaurant and Biergarten.

The planetarium theater is fully equipped with modern planetarium and audio-visual technology. All other supporting rooms of the planetarium are perfect for hosting conferences and have all modern A/V equipment as well.

Accessibility, mentors, live streams, families with children and more: here you can find further useful information that is good to know in the context of your participation in IPS 2024.