San Diego, CA—The Fleet Science Center is excited to announce the reopening of the Eugene Heikoff and Marilyn Jacobs Heikoff Giant Dome Theater with a Next-Generation IMAX with Laser projection system on Friday, October 29. The Fleet Science Center is home to the world’s first IMAX Dome Theater, presenting the most significant films on the planet.

Since the theater opened in 1973, it has shown 114 films and has had over 150,000 screenings. The 48-year-old OMINMAX 70mm film projector was retired in September of this year and was celebrated with an IMAX film festival. The Fleet’s projectionists threaded the many spindles and rollers of the giant film projector for the last time, ushering in a new era for the world’s first IMAX dome theater. 

The Next-Generation IMAX with Laser represents a quantum leap forward in cinema technology, providing audiences with the sharpest, brightest, most precise and vivid digital images ever combined with powerful, immersive audio. IMAX’s six-laser-aligned loudspeakers distribute equal volume throughout the theater to create an optimum listening environment that ensures that every seat is the best in the house. 

The new state-of-the-art technology will allow the Fleet Science Center to deliver a more comprehensive array of the highest-quality digital content, including documentary films and IMAX movies, and lead the industry with new kinds of cutting-edge educational experiences. 

In addition to offering higher quality images and sound, the Next-Generation IMAX with Laser system is DCI compliant, the standard used by the broader digital cinema market. With fewer film distributors willing to create film prints, the new system ensures the Fleet’s ability to offer top-quality documentaries to visitors and to educators bringing students on field trips to support their STEM learning. 

The newest immersive experiences in the Heikoff Giant Dome Theater, as limited special engagements, are full-feature IMAX Movies. Opening on October 29, audiences will be transported to planet Arrakis when they experience Dune in the dome. The Heikoff Giant Dome Theater is one of the select locations worldwide where Dune will have an IMAX-exclusive 1.43 aspect ratio, with up to 40% more picture for the film and ultimately showing more of the stunning imagery conceived by Director Denis Villeneuve. Other IMAX Movies coming soon to the Heikoff Giant Dome Theater are the Eternals, opening November 5, and Ghostbusters: Afterlife, opening November 19, 2021. 

Tickets for Dune are now available for purchase. For more information about Dune in the Heikoff Giant Dome Theater, visit fleetscience.org/shows/dune.

Included with admission to the Fleet Science Center, visitors will experience documentary films like never before. Premiering in the Heikoff Giant Dome Theater on October 30, Into America’s Wild is a visually stunning cross-country adventure into the hidden wonders of the natural world. Familiar favorites returning to the giant dome screen are Turtle Odyssey and Great Bear Rainforest. 

For more information about the Heikoff Giant Dome Theater, please visit fleetscience.org/shows. 

For the most updated information on activities and events at the Fleet Science Center, please visit fleetscience.org or follow us on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.