Planetarium

Synonyms / Other Terms Used

Observatory, Astronomical Observatory

Category

Public Facilities, Tourism, Culture and Heritage

Message / Function

For notice in general and to indicate the location of a planetarium or observatory

	Source	Description
	Peru 2016	Outside view of an observatory
	ISO 7001	Moon, stars, and planets inside dome
	MDCT	Moon, stars, and planets inside dome
	Aragón	Arrangement of planets
	Fassati	Side view of building with dome and two doors, two stars on dome
	DER	Stars inside dome, telescope below
	Ecuador	Outside view of an observatory with telescope

Observatory

	Québec	Outside view of an observatory, several stars above
	Deutsches Museum	Outside view of an observatory, star nearby
	Fassati	Outside view of an observatory with door and window, star nearby
	pngwing.com	Outside view of observatory with door, dome, and telescope

Note: Some of the examples shown above were mirrored horizontally to contrast differences.

Discussion

Several concepts exist to indicate the location of a planetarium or an observatory: Besides pictograms displaying some typical architectural elements of an observatory, various arrangements of stars or typical planets, or combinations of such elements can be found and a clear differentiation is not always possible. Some designers also added components indicating a telescope to support clarity of the intended message, but this might also increase confusion regarding these two types of facilities.

In our research we did not discover any test data on features like comprehensibility, familiarity, concreteness, simplicity, or any other aspects of pictograms used to indicate the location of a planetarium or an observatory. It also is not clear, whether specific pictograms offering a differentiation between astronomical observatories and planetaria are necessary or not, and if the general public would reliably understand this differentiation based on pictograms.

Recommendations

Due to the fact, that no data from research is available, and since we have insufficient knowledge of relevant factors, we recommend testing using the Comprehensibility Estimation procedure for eliminating poor variants and identifying the best of the set available, followed by a Comprehension Test. These studies should deliver useful data for recommending one or several pictograms. Detailed information about the most frequent responses given in each of the response categories of the Comprehension Test should be provided to correctly judge comprehensibility and improve designs.

Tests of pictograms of referent Planetarium, Observatory

No data from research or tests is available in our database.