BENGALURU : Prajwal M, a resident of Mysuru and a post-graduate student through his portable planetarium, called ‘Cosmic Egg’, opened up the wonders of the universe to the students of rural school. Cosmic Egg, till date, has educated over 1,000 students in government schools and schools for the disabled in Mysuru, Mandya, and Pandavapura. As many as 20 students can gather inside this planetarium at a time.
Prajwal says that as a student of physics, he started reading more about astronomy. “We were taught through PowerPoint Presentations. I wanted to educate students in a better way and worked towards it. While going through NASA’s website, I found an open software called ‘Stellarium’.
It shows a realistic sky in 3D, just like what you see with the naked eye or a telescope. But I wanted to present it in a better way.” He says his dream got a boost, thanks to the Deshpande Foundation. He says they he shared his idea of getting a planetarium at a lower cost at a programme called Leadership challenge.
“My physics professor Kathyayini played a big role in making Cosmic Egg. My friend and I created the planetarium using tarpaulin, a table fan, a projector and a computer for `4,000. Stellarium was used for the project. Cosmic Egg was shortlisted during the Leadership Challenge. We took the help of the NASA educational website to refine our model. The whole process took us less than four days to complete.”
He began promoting the planetarium at government and schools for the physically disabled. He plans to make his planetarium more interactive. He believes that Cosmic Egg can bridge the gaps in science education, especially in rural schools.