The Journey Museum is seeking nearly $1 million in funding from NASA to build a domed, state-of-the-art digital planetarium designed to inspire awe and curiosity about the cosmos through an immersive virtual environment.

It also would provide a "Wow!" factor for the museum - something for which The Journey board has been searching for several years, according to executive director Ray Summers.

"We've been exploring a long list of enhancements to the museum to make it a more interesting place, get more people involved in our programs," Summers said.

The computer-generated projection system uses a database created through collaboration between the American Museum of Natural History and the Hayden Planetarium in New York, NASA, and a Swedish company. With the click of a drop-down menu, viewers can "fly" from the Crab Nebula to Jupiter's moon Io in an instant.

"It's a really incredible planetarium system," Summers said. "Most planetariums in the world are going to this kind of technology. The old analog balls that project light points onto a black ceiling are pretty much being replaced by these digital systems."

The system also would allow live link-ups on the Internet with major planetariums, such as the Hayden, allowing people here to experience the same astronomy programs presented at those locations.

"It becomes like Google Earth on steroids. It's like Google Universe. It's a tremendous leap in technology, and it would be great if we can be part of that," Summers said.

Last spring, the Journey's staff and board of directors contacted the Minnesota Planetarium Society, which brought a portable version of the planetarium here in late July. It was set up at The Journey and downtown for one night during the Summer Nights on 7th festival and was well-received by the public.

"About 500 people went through it. The response was just overwhelmingly positive, and many folks said this is the kind of thing they want to see and experience," Summers said.

A variety of local entities worked together on the grant application. The project team consists of Journey staff; astronomy instructors at South Dakota School of Mines & Technology and Black Hills State University; the Center for the Advancement of Math and Science Education in Spearfish; the Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs, commonly called the GEAR UP youth education program; and astronomy instructors within the Rapid City school district.

If successful, the five-year grant would pay the entire cost of remodeling The Journey's star room into a 220-degree dome that would seat about 45 people and installing an "incredibly robust" projection and database system that would allow viewers to experience every imaged object in the solar system and universe.

A large portion of the project also involves an extensive outreach program to improve student, educator and general public understanding of earth/space science.

But fierce competition for funds is likely. The Journey is one of about 60 museums and planetariums nationwide seeking funding through NASA's office of education. Only $6 million is available in the program, so only a few projects are likely to receive grant money.

The grant would pay all of the project's costs. Local museum officials won't learn until late next spring whether the application was successful. However, even if no money is awarded, the Journey board intends to continue pursuing the project. Summers said the current economic climate might make fundraising difficult, but the board is committed to the planetarium idea.

"Right now, our bet is on the NASA grant. If that doesn't work out, … we'll regroup and see if we can garner support other ways," Summers said. "We're pretty excited about the possibility. We're not betting the farm on it, but it will definitely be a transitional moment for The Journey Museum to have a planetarium."

Contact Scott Aust at 394-8415 or scott.aust@rapidcityjournal.com