Dome Club Ltd

Quality Digital and Non-Digital Domes for shared immersive experiences

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Digital domes allow large audiences to experience 360° virtual worlds without the need for VR headsets, fostering eye-to-eye human connections while delivering powerful multi-sensory immersive experiences. Non-digital domes are both beautiful and highly versatile spaces with endless practical uses. We are agents for Discovery Dome, Advanced Sensory Education & Entertainment (ASE), and Go-Dome, as well as fulldome (360°) film distributors for Mirage3D, Spitz Creative Media, AVI, ePlanetarium, Starlight Productions and Aayushi Animations. We also maintain the international list of FREE fulldome content in partnership with the British Fulldome Institute (BFI).

Inflatable Bubble Dome

Sturdy, weatherproof indoor or outdoor inflatable dome. Available as a 360° digital cinema or simple event dome.

Standard Geodesic Dome

Robust, weatherproof indoor or outdoor geodesic domes (steel or aluminum frame). Either 360° digital cinemas or event domes.

Honeycomb Dome

Small, frameless outdoor dome made from UV-safe polycarbonate panels; with active or passive ventilation.

Go-Dome Inflatable

Indoor mobile domes with unique airlock doorway. Available from 4m to 10m diameter and raised up to 5 rings.

ASE Inflatable

Lightweight portable indoor domes; 4m to 10m, with various striped colour options. Also available with adjustable heights.

Geo-Go-Dome

5-8m geodesic dome for limited outdoor use. Available as a 360° horizontal / tilted digital cinema or as a regular event dome.

Spherical mirrors

Go-Vex and ASE first-surface spherical mirrors are durable and specifically manufactured for dome projection.

Fulldome (360°) Films

We distribute films from leading fulldome film producers, as well as a large, growing library of free content from the BFI.

Newtonian Projection Box

Easily upgradable and almost 60% higher resolution than fisheye projection. This robust box comes with a Go-Vex mirror.

ASE Projection Box

Easily upgradable and almost 60% higher resolution than fisheye projection. The single mirror improves light output.

Rover360 Projection Stand

Modular all-in-one easily transportable and upgradable projection stand. Almost 60% higher resolution than fisheye projection.

Dome Covers

Attract attention by adding personality to your Go-Dome with a decorative cover. Use your own artwork if you wish.

Seats

Have your audiences recline in comfort. Lightweight, durable, waterproof and fire resistant. Available in three sizes.

Funding for Planetarium Visits to Schools

Our schools outreach service Immersive Theatres can help you fund your planetarium visit via FundEd.

Consulting Services

25 years experience, including consultants for the Macao Planetarium (China) and Peter Harrison Planetarium (London).

Dome Club Ltd Customers

Dome & Projection Box
Projection Box / Mirror
Dome / Other
Software

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Did You Know?

  • A mobile planetarium business can be highly lucrative, with superb opportunities in the UK right now
  • You can easily and inexpensively warp all fisheye content for the spherical mirror
  • Inflatable Go-Domes raised with one ring are less tall than non-raised equivalents and provide more usable space
  • ASE inflatable domes can be ordered with two adjustable heights
  • Geo-Go-Domes are available with horizontal or tilted domes - or both
  • Inflatable Go-Domes can be ordered with a sturdy wheelchair entrance
  • As tempting as inexpensive domes from Amazon / China may at first seem, you should consider the following:
    • due to their very nature, inflatable domes experience much stress and strain. Continual inflating, deflating, and transporting results in wear and tear on the fabric. It's a known fact in the industry that inexpensive 'knock-off' domes do not stand the test of time, and after a year or so can literally begin to fall apart. Buying from a genuine planetarium manufacturer will ensure you receive a hardy, long-lasting dome.
    • to optimise the quality of the projected image, the inner surface of the dome needs to be of a particular texture, and a particular shade of grey. There is no guarantee you'll receive this with a cheap dome.
  • Spherical mirror projection is being used successfully in fixed domes as large as 15m and up to 20m in diameter
  • You can view an image gallery of spherical mirror installations from around the world here
  • Spherical mirror projectors can be upgraded easily, unlike fisheye lens projectors that require an expensive, projector-specific lens
  • Not all projectors are suitable for spherical mirror projection and this is how to test them
  • Unlike the original delicate mirrors, modern spherical mirrors are durable and can withstand touching and cleaning
  • Truncated fisheye projection (an attempt to increase the relatively poor resolution of fisheye systems) is very similar to spherical mirror projection ie. resulting in a truncated area (small shadow) at the back of the dome
  • Spherical mirror projection provides between 28% better resolution (16:10 projectors) and 58% better resolution (16:9 projectors) than fisheye projection:
  • We also sell fisheye lens projectors. Yet customers hardly ever buy them because they are TRIPLE the cost of spherical mirror projection, with significantly lower resolution
  • Why then do people sometimes buy fisheye lens projectors?
    • possibly they’re not aware of the relatively new spherical mirror projection option
    • fisheye lens projection produces a full, uninterrupted horizon (whereas a spherical mirror creates small shadows on the dome behind it)
  • Yet consider this:
    • although some audience members may prefer a full, uninterrupted horizon; most won’t mind (or even notice) if you use the software to spin the sky around to show North, for example
    • it may be quaint to have the audience sit in a circle looking up at the sky (as if they’re outside), yet after 10-15 min most people get bored of seeing stars (and very likely the sound of your voice!)
    • so next you’ll project astronomical images and video clips. Yet with fisheye lens projection such content needs to be radially symmetrical and positioned at dome zenith if the concentrically-seated audience is to enjoy it equally; limiting your choice of content
    • you’ll soon run out of radially symmetrical visuals (plus by now the audience is truly weary of your voice), so you next decide to screen a fulldome film
    • yet 99.9% of fulldome films are unidirectional, which means at least half your audience will be watching the film upside down (see example here )
      • you therefore ask everyone to move to the rear of the dome
      • this of course means that, as with a spherical mirror system, you can never completely fill your dome
    • With so many restrictions and limitations, is it worth paying up to $20,000 extra for a fisheye projection system, just so you can offer a 'full, uninterrupted horizon'? Your expensive fisheye lens system will risk falling into disuse and begin collecting dust in a storeroom somewhere
      • we are occasionally approached by fisheye lens system owners (examples here and here) enquiring what they can do to make their systems as portable and as versatile as a spherical mirror system
      • we've had audience members who saw the same film in a 7m dome with spherical mirror projection, and again in a 7m dome with fisheye lens projection, say: 'the fisheye projector being at the centre of the dome made us, the audience, feel of secondary importance, as if we were pushed out to the side'.
  • Interestingly, the fisheye lens system manufacturer claiming to be the 'market leader' with ' the best selling portable digital planetarium systems in the world ', refuses to publish its list of customers (the way most other manufacturers do, and as we do above).

Spherical Mirror Advantages

  • projector can be replaced or upgraded very easily
  • equipment is located at the back of the dome, freeing the centre with 20% more seating space
  • mirror less expensive to replace than fisheye lens
  • approx. 30-60% higher resolution (see up above)
  • projection level easily raised above tall people
  • can also be used to project on a wall or ceiling
Spherical Mirror Disadvantages
  • creates a small shadow at the back of the dome
  • slight image distortion at the back of the dome
  • beginners require brief set-up time to align mirror
  • 360˚ content needs to be warped before projection

Fisheye Projector Advantages

  • 100% dome coverage
  • slightly easier for beginners to set up
Fisheye Projector Disadvantages
  • lenses usually custom-made, making projector upgrade impossible without a new expensive lens
  • equipment is located at dome centre, taking up the best audience viewing area
  • audience can tamper with projector and cables
  • approx. 30-60% lower resolution (see up above)
  • projection level fixed and cannot be raised
  • significantly more expensive
  • often substantially heavier

Dome Club Doctor

Powerful Image Sequence Scanner

For Windows (10 & 11) and macOS (Big Sur onwards).

Quickly find missing files and accurately locate corrupted / damaged images.

Available for a donation of £25 each (or £40 for both ). Donations are used for ongoing development of the application.

Meshmapper Training

Learn to Project in Perfect 360° with a Spherical Mirror

Receive training with Meshmapper , the spherical mirror calibration tool by Paul Bourke.

Cost = £50 / hour + travel (45p / mile). Normally requires 3-4 hours.

Optional extras include learning how to: warp fulldome content for your particular system (using tgawarp ); encode prewarped content into a movie (using ffmpeg ); and operate your dome with a dual display (so you can work / check email while your audience watches a fulldome film).

NOTE: Meshmapper is available for macOS only.