Fixed Installations

If you need to install a dome in a fixed location within a building, a Stargazer Negative Pressure Dome can offer a solution at a fraction of the cost of a traditionally constructed dome.

We can make a fabric dome to order which can be installed in a sealed space, using a circular aperture. A small fan can be used to lower the air pressure within the enclosed void space and create a perfect dome. The pressure differential does not need to be great, and the fan can run virtually silently. The photo here shows an inflated negative pressure dome from within the ceiling cavity.

The cavity space needs to be hermetically sealed, but this is not a difficult process. A spray-on sealant can be applied to the internal joins, as shown here.

Anti Jannes of Pro Dome International, Helsinki, fitted a "Stargazer" negative pressure dome into a theatre in Munio, Finland, near the Arctic Circle, dedicated to showing pictures of the Aurora Borealis. This dome uses no suspension strings. The fan is used continuously, at very low power.

Here is a dome being installed into its circular frame, which will then be attached to the ceiling aperture. The dome is never allowed to collapse into the auditorium, since it is suspended from from the ceiling by a series of lugs with suspension strings. The process of 'forming' the dome into a perfect projection surface takes only minutes.

A Negative Pressure Dome can also be constructed in its own self-contained cylindrical frame. The frame is sealed and the air pressure reduced within the frame by using a fan.

Once constructed, this cylindrical frame can be suspended from a ceiling to create a freestanding overhead dome, which people can walk underneath. The photo illustrated shows such a dome being used in Helsinki, Finland. It later moved to America, where it can be seen on the Skyskan catalogue.

Work is in hand to create a negative pressure dome quick assembly unit. It will have an upper dome rather than a cylinder.