E LUCEVAN LE STELLE: ENGAGING THE PUBLIC OF ROME IN A CULTURAL REPOSSESSION OF THE URBAN SKY

Abstract

During the Summer of 2016, the Planetarium of Rome organized a successful and innovative public observ

ing event: E Lucevan le Stelle. Intended to revamp the attention for the local Planetarium and Astronomical

Museum – closed since 4 years for renovation works – the event was a call to citizens and amateurs to join

the Planetarium astronomers at 8 different locations in the city with their own telescopes for free stargazing

sessions, like a diffuse urban star party. Each place was selected in relation to an astronomical theme, with

“guided tours” to the evening sky narrated by the Planetarium astronomers, illustrating the cultural rele

vance of each location with reference to the history of astronomy in Rome.

By connecting the squares and the parks used as observing spots, the circuit of E Lucevan le Stelle invited

the public to create a new constellation over Rome and name it. Inspired by the historic effort of Pope Sixtus

V, who traced the streets around the Basilica of S. Maria Maggiore in the shape of a star, and by other

astronomical readings of the network of churches and landmarks, the goal of this event was to bring to light

the ancient connections between Rome and the stars, in the spirit of the European Year of Cultural Heritage.

By switching off the main lights at each location, the project aimed at encouraging a direct participation to a

collective repossession of the urban sky. The overall attendance to the event was estimated to be

approximately 7000 people.