SGI's Silicon Graphics(R) Onyx2(TM) visual workstation will be used to
produce and project the world's first scientifically accurate 3D atlas of
the Milky Way Galaxy at the new Hayden Planetarium as part of the American
Museum of Natural History's Rose Center for Earth and Space in New York
City, which opens in 2000. As the centerpiece of the Hayden's 68-foot
"virtual dome" Space Theater, Silicon Graphics Onyx2 will manipulate
massive scientific datasets containing billions of stars -- 100,000 times
larger than that of any other planetarium. The resulting 3D star map will
also include close-ups of individual nebula, modeled from Hubble Telescope
images, providing a one-of-a-kind experience for viewers, and further
blurring the line between simulation and reality.


SGI is working closely with Trimension Systems Ltd., the system integrator
for all aspects of the computer system, display system and show automation
technology. Aechelon Technology is developing C-Galaxy, the
image-generation software used to traverse star and astronomical databases
in real time. Aechelon's video playback control software permits the
merging of fully rendered sequences into the real-time traversal for
flexible show programming.