www.jonlomberg.com www.galaxygarden.net galaxygarden@hawaii.rr.com lomberg@aloha.net P. O. Box 207 Honaunau HI 96726 U.S.A 808-328-9598
JON LOMBERG Galaxy Garden Earth s first walk-through model of our Milky Way Galaxy Galaxy Garden Enterprises delivers a revolutionary new astronomy education experience that conveys the scale of our Universe as never before - The Galaxy Garden TM Created by Jon Lomberg, the world-famous Emmy Award winning artist who has helped shape an entire generation s image of the Universe. Lomberg s 25 year partnership with Carl Sagan produced some of the most important science inspired art of our time, including: NASA s legendary Voyager Interstellar Record, Humanity s self-portrait launched on a billion year voyage to the stars: COSMOS, CONTACT, and four message artifacts on the surface of Mars. No other artist on Earth has designed so many artifacts for distant times, worlds, and beings. www.jonlomberg.com In 1992 the National Air and Space Museum in Washington DC commissioned a large and accurate painting of the Milky Way galaxy. This artwork has remained an iconic image of the galaxy for this generation of astronomers, used in many textbooks, museums, and for NASA s Kepler and ACE missions http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/kepler/multimedia/images/kepler-target-in -the-milkyway.html The Galaxy Garden in Hawaii is Earth s first large-scale walk-through model of the Milky Way Galaxy and is based on Lomberg s Portrait of the Milky Way mural painted for the Smithsonian Institution s National Air and Space Museum in Wash. DC.
The hardest thing to envision about the galaxy is its sheer vastness. Pictures on a page don't do it. Even a large mural on a wall doesn't do it justice. Scale-model solar systems have proven an effective teaching tool for conveying the geography of our Sun and its planets. These models of the solar system have enabled students to understand the distances between planets in our own solar system. Such models appear in Ithaca, New York, (Washington, D.C., Pasadena, California, and in Peoria, Illinois, where you can bicycle your way around the Solar System. I wanted to create the same kind of experience of the Milky Way Galaxy, a model you can walk around inside. A living garden symbolizes the stars, forming, dying, and reforming in our galaxy all the time. And walking along the spiral arms to the center is an interstellar journey that everyone can make. Jon Lomberg The Galaxy Garden is the first time our Milky Way galaxy has been rendered as an accurate walk-through map; a "living portrait" of our galaxy, realized as a garden. In a 30m diameter Galaxy Garden, 1 meter= ~3000 light years. One cm = ~30 light years. A single leaf holds the Sun and millions of other stars, including most of those we can see with unaided eyes. Visitors experience a Eureka! moment, understanding for the first time the scale of the Milky Way and our tiny neighborhood within it. More than just an intellectual exercise, the Galaxy Garden permits actual exploration by young and old alike and provides a powerful, almost transcendent experience of our place in the Universe. The first Galaxy Garden was built in Kona, Hawaii with much of the labor donated by local high school students and volunteers of all ages. In fact the intergenerational effort was one of the most rewarding aspects of the construction phase.
The Galaxy Garden has become an astronomy attraction for local, national and international visitors, Schools and other groups. I visited the Galaxy Garden in early May 2008 and was quite impressed. This is a great way for people to visualize the enormous size and stunning beauty of our home, the Milky Way Galaxy. There are a number of Solar System "walk-along models" available throughout the world (for example, in Ithaca, NY, inspired by Carl Sagan), but I know of no similar model of the Galaxy. This is an excellent educational tool, and well worth a visit if you are on the Big Island of Hawaii. Alex Filippenko, Dept. of Astronomy, UC Berkeley Every planetarium and museum should hire you to create have a garden like this for them! We non-science folk can grasp the galactic concept by viewing and walking in such a beautiful garden. Bjo, California Breathtaking... What a gift you have created for all of us. To parallel the majesty of our galaxy with the beauty of your local flora... Thank you - for sharing your creativity. Carlotta, New Hampshire This is obviously a labour of love! Thank you so much for doing this beautiful garden - science in the most wonderful form! I'm literally thrilled. Celia, British Columbia La experiencia de conocer otra forma de entender la realidad, ha sido importante no para conocer lo pequeños que somos, sino que sabemos dosnde estamos y quienes somos. Gracias al Galaxy Garden, las nuevas generaciones pueden entender con poesía y belleza un poco mas de ser humanos Guillermo, Chile The Galaxy Garden is an experience that engages the senses; the exquisite beauty of the flowers representing nebula; the sound made by walking on the crunchy cinder paths which sounds like real radio static coming from space. The Galaxy Garden is a place for all people from all walks of life regardless of age, background, education, ethnicity, gender. Everyone comes away thrilled.
Galaxy Garden Enterprises provides astronomy outreach exhibits that engage the community and spark the interest of the new generation of space explorers. And as so, our company provide: Licensed use of the Galaxy Garden concept and model of the galaxy which it is based. Creation of a new site-specific Galaxy Garden visualizations for academic, science center, or botanical garden locations on which detailed designs can be based. Detailed design of a site specific Galaxy Garden incorporating local plants and minerals best-suited for a year-round garden. Design of the Black Hole fountain and other special features. Supporting graphics, signage, and other materials. A Collaborative relationship with other Galaxy Gardens to share materials developed for specific educational and general audiences. Public or scientific lectures and articles about the Galaxy Garden. The Galaxy Garden in Kona was designed to fit naturally into the Hawaiian landscape. Galaxy Garden Enterprises believe that a similar design can be found that is equally expressive of the landscape and vegetation of your location. Our next priority is to understand your interest and answer any questions or concerns. This will able us to create the desired garden. We are looking forward to working with you. Sharona Lomberg POBox 207 Honaunau, HI 96726 U.S.A. 808-328-9598 e-mail : galaxygarden@hawaii.rr.com www.jonlomberg.com www.galaxygarden.net