lifting the world
translated with Google traduction
Galileo’s children swing at the Ritterhude kindergarten (1995 - Germany).
Astronomy has always been a dream of mine. When I think about it, like my Luchrones it’s also a matter of light…
Val de Reuil in Normandy is twinned with Ritterhude in northern Germany. The team brought together in 1995 for the swing project would be behind Earth in Real Time that we would create for the Corsair Company.
The terrestrial globe uses the same construction technique as sailboards: a glass fabric skin is placed on a polystyrene sphere. A lightweight construction that is weather-resistant.
Construction of the sphere at Val de Reuil
Gluing the polystyrene blocks
Shaping the sphere
Preparing the surface
Drawing the continents
The painter at work
The installation in Ritterhude
setup
montage
Ingo Kurth, the Mayor of Ritterhude checks that the Earth turns
This project is as precise as it is economical. The sun rotates during the day with its usual precision. This is true for the hours, as well as for the seasons, which are perfectly visible. As in reality on Earth, snow or ice cover the north pole of the seesaw in winter, which, beyond the Arctic Circle, is no longer illuminated by the winter sun.
strength tests of Galileo’s seesaw
Of course, you can rotate the Earth in kindergarten on its axis. The children never tire of it. When they rest, an internal weight spontaneously returns Germany to the meridian. A car shock absorber in the fulcrum prevents sudden vertical movements.
A very fond memory for each of us.
Credits: Bernard Trézéguet (Astronomer); Eric Hébert (Painter and Director of ODS); Ingo Kurth (Mayor of Ritterhude); Serge Ledanois (Subjects); Sté Veneu (metalwork and mechanism); Patrick Huon (solutions); Claude S’agit (implementation).