»Space retreat: a mental health recovery practice under the dome for internally displaced people in Ukraine«

Presentation theme: inclusion, diversity, equity, accessibility

Since the very beginning of the full-scale invasion in Ukraine, Planetarium Noosphere, situated in Dnipro only 100 km away from the war zone, has launched a social initiative to support thousands of internally displaced persons. 

Staying open during massive missile attacks, and long-lasting blackouts, Planetarium Noosphere welcomed the audience with a new, specific and unusual for a planetarium demand. Rather than an exciting discovery of astronomy, these people perceived the real-time space journey simulations under the dome as an opportunity to dream away from severe wartime reality. 

The dome projection of constellations and space objects completed by the acoustics isolating from outer noises makes the impression of impermeability to dangers, inviting to relaxation, self-observation, and meditation. It reminded the team of Planetarium Noosphere of a spiritual retreat where the place of untouched nature is taken by space: planets, nebulae and star clusters humans have never been to physically, but can escape to in their mind with the help of spacescapes projected at the planetarium. 

With more than 8500 attendances including 6500 children, space retreat under the dome proves its efficiency as a new tool for overcoming psychological trauma. Mental health recovery being one of the major challenges for Ukraine, Planetarium Noosphere managed to find the solution, inviting to rethink and reload worldwide the mission of a planetarium not only as a center for astronomy, but also as a center for mental health recovery.