Tallying The World's Planetarium Attendance
by Mark C. Petersen, Loch Ness Productions
A periodic posting, prepared
8 March 2010
"In any given year, how many people visit the world's planetaria?"
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This simple question is an important one, as it reflects upon the very
viability and importance of our profession, and the dome theater itself as a
media outlet and dispenser of enlightenment -- astronomical and
otherwise.
Since 1990, I've collected annual attendance figures for planetaria
in the Loch Ness Productions database. School shows, public shows, concerts,
laser shows, whatever and altogether -- how many humans experience the
simulated environment of the starry sky under a planetarium dome?
To date I've received responses from about 15% of the world's
theaters, enough to put together a "rough
estimate". For some additional observations and disclaimers,
read this page.
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A quick explanation about my methods.
- First, since the United States has nearly as many planetaria as the rest
of the world's countries combined, it makes sense to separate out the U. S. responses for observation when counting.
- Next, I categorize the domes by size (diameter in meters).
- I add up all the annual attendance figures I received for each category, and average the total.
- Then, I multiply that average by the number of domes of that size
known to exist, to project an annual attendance for each category.
- Sum them
up, and voilá, an estimate of total annual attendance. I also
calculate for how much of the projection each category accounts.
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Here's the tally:
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Dome size |
Responses |
Total Visitors |
Average |
Domes |
Projection |
Percentage |
| United States |
21m - up
| 9
| 2,792,000
| 310,222
| 14
| 4,343,111
| 14.1
| | 18 - 20.9
| 18
| 1,932,405
| 107,355
| 24
| 2,576,540
| 8.3
| | 15 - 17.9
| 22
| 2,068,370
| 94,016
| 40
| 3,760,672
| 12.2
| | 12 - 14.9
| 46
| 1,614,732
| 35,102
| 96
| 3,369,875
| 10.9
| | 9 - 11.9
| 98
| 1,717,443
| 17,524
| 315
| 5,520,352
| 17.9
| | 6 - 8.9
| 54
| 525,897
| 9,738
| 336
| 3,272,248
| 10.6
| | 1 - 5.9
| 38
| 471,351
| 12,403
| 634
| 7,864,119
| 25.6
| | unknown
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 131
| 0
| 0.0
| | TOTALS
| ( 18%) 285
| 11,122,198
| | 1590
| 30,706,919
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| International
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|---|
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21m - up
| 14
| 3,467,657
| 247,689
| 80
| 19,815,182
| 24.1
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18 - 20.9
| 24
| 4,047,894
| 168,662
| 91
| 15,348,264
| 18.7
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15 - 17.9
| 14
| 1,361,654
| 97,261
| 95
| 9,239,795
| 11.2
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12 - 14.9
| 19
| 909,138
| 47,849
| 137
| 6,555,363
| 8.0
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9 - 11.9
| 15
| 640,003
| 42,666
| 224
| 9,557,378
| 11.6
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6 - 8.9
| 30
| 760,081
| 25,336
| 506
| 12,820,032
| 15.6
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1 - 5.9
| 28
| 452,100
| 16,146
| 532
| 8,589,900
| 10.4
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unknown
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 245
| 0
| 0.0
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TOTALS
| ( 8%) 144
| 11,638,527
| | 1910
| 81,925,917
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So the answer for 8 March 2010 is:
Each year 112,632,836 people visit the 3500 planetaria of the world.
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As always, I ask your assistance in providing numbers: an attendance figure over a 12-month period for each of the domes your institution operates. I'll incorporate the information and publish it periodically here, just as I now have.
The best way to respond is to fill out an LNP Dome Theater Compendium Update Form -- as this will allow us to "freshen" the data we have about your theater facilities, and fill in any blank fields.
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The latest version of this article can always be found in the Reference Library section of the Loch Ness Productions Web site.
And if you have already responded, thanks!
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