Stars of the Pharaoh - Planetarium Shows at HMNS

 An accomplished museum executive in Houston, Texas, Joel Bartsch has spent more than three decades at the Houston Museum of Natural Science, where he served in various capacities. In 2004, Joel A. Bartsch accepted the role of president and CEO of the Houston Museum of Natural Science (HMNS).

One of the planetaria shows at HMNS' Burke Baker Planetarium is Stars Of The Pharaohs. The show reveals how the early astronomers on Earth documented the stars, made the first solar calendar, and aligned Egyptian temples and pyramids with celestial geometry. The show also explores some of an ancient civilization's momentous temples and tombs. Actor John Rhys-Davies narrates Stars Of The Pharaoh.

Burke Baker Planetarium at HMNS has been presenting astronomical programs since its opening in 1964. The well-appointed exhibition hall features all the earmarks of an advanced planetarium. It has been retrofitted with the Digistar 6 Sych, a leading digital planetarium system worldwide. The Digistar system also has a cloud library, which helps incorporate the latest discoveries into the planetarium's shows.

Theater Offers State-of-the-Art Movie Experience at HMNS

A graduate of Rice University, Joel Bartsch is a Houston, Texas resident who started his career at the Colorado School of Mines Geology Museum as a curatorial assistant and assistant to the director. Since then, he has held key roles at various prominent museums. Joel A. Bartsch serves as the president and CEO of the Houston Museum of Natural Science (HMNS).

The renovated Wortham Giant Screen Theatre at HMNS offers state-of-the-art 4K digital projection of large 3D images on a giant 60 x 80-foot screen. This enables clear visualization of roughly eight-story-high images. Families, seniors, students, and museum members are welcome to watch movies at the theater, which augments its quality 3D visuals with an enhanced six-track sound system.

As of Q4 2022, some of the shows at the Wortham Giant Screen Theatre are "Dinosaur Discoveries: A Holographic Adventure," "Mummies: Secrets of the Pharaohs," and "Sea Lions 3D." Dinosaur Discoveries: A Holographic Adventure is HMNS' first HoloTheater. HMNS works closely with BASE Xperiential to create this educational laser-aided 3D holographic imagery.

 

Exhibit Types at the Houston Museum of Natural Science

 The president and CEO of the Houston Museum of Natural Science (HMNS) since 2004, Joel A. Bartsch is an experienced mineralogist who has contributed his expertise to multiple museums throughout the United States. To increase interest in the museum, Joel Bartsch collaborated with the board of directors to add new exhibits and promote preexisting ones.

The HMNS hosts multiple exhibition types, covering different disciplines and mediums. Its permanent exhibitions, like the Cockrell Butterfly Center or Dinosaurs of Antarctica 3D, offer opportunities for visitors to learn about entomology or paleontology interactively. The Rockwell Butterfly Center is modeled after a rainforest, where visitors can walk through and witness the butterflies living there up close. Dinosaurs of the Antarctic 3D uses holograms to display the region's fauna as living specimens rather than fossils.

The museum also hosts rotating exhibits from around the world. From May 2022 to June 2023, visitors can admire the Dreher Masterworks, a collection of gems carved by the Dreher family in Idar-Oberstein, Germany. This exhibit differs from the HMNS’ permanent one, the Cullen Hall of Gems and Minerals, by highlighting rare gemstones like rubies, sapphires, and topazes. To preserve the exhibits’ contents for future generations, the museum forbids flash photography within and requires arrangements beforehand if members of the press wish to film there.

The Carnegie Mineralogical Award

 A mineralogist for over 40 years, Joel A. Bartsch began his role as the Houston Museum of Natural Science’s president and CEO in 2004. In recognition of his professional achievements, Joel Bartsch received the Carnegie Mineralogical Award in 2004.

The Carnegie Museum of Natural History, alongside the Hillman Foundation, gave out the first Carnegie Mineralogical Award in 1987. It celebrates not only individuals but also groups or publications that educate academics or the public. Interested parties submit nominees by either late November or early December of the award year, and the ceremony takes place in Q1 of the following calendar year.

The Carnegie Museum of Natural History recognizes groundbreaking research in the field and the recipient’s work in the community. The 2020 winner, Dr. John C. Medici, for instance, received the award for collecting, preserving, and distributing thousands of mineral specimens throughout the United States and Canada to museums. The 2021 award, given to DR. Barbara Lee Dutrow, praised her work on mineralogy courses for attracting students and mentoring women and underrepresented students entering mineralogy.