Orrery - Model of the Earth, Sun and Moon - Planetarium with Antique Book Chapters on CD Rom and Book "The Planets"

For auction is a nice, fully functional orrery or planetarium. This provides a nice illustration of the "clockwork universe." It also makes a great display item.

This orrery has been fully inspected and I only found one slight problem in that when the orrery is rotating with the gear box operating, there is a slight wobble noted.  I tried adjusting the parts of the orrery in various positions to eliminate this wobble and I was not successful.  I believe that someone else would be more successful.  Otherwise, all parts of the orrery were free of defects and fully operational.  The orrery functioned more smoothly when the gearbox was removed and turned manually.  In my opinion, I enjoy the orrery manually driven as it allows for more careful observation and performs beautifully as a more traditional orrery.  The gearbox does not have variable speed options, so when it is operating with the gear box, the orrery is turning a bit rapidly.  When the orrery is displayed without the gearbox on a nice bookshelf with the sun globe lit up, it can be quite decorative as it is made of quality materials looking more in the tradition of Trippensee orrerys and very unlike a toy.  I found after looking at many orrerys, that it is beautifully made with quality metal and detailed imprinting on the earth globe that is beautifully accurate.  I have not been able to find an orrery like this that to offer on Ebay this inexpensively.

The black box in the picture is a battery operated gear drive, which is turned on by the white switch. When you slide the drive forward and fasten it with the black knob, the orrery is mechanically driven. The moon will rotate around the earth, while the earth is rotating around its own axis and also around the sun. If you want to manually adjust the position of the earth and moon (for example, to show a phase of the moon or an eclipse) then you slide the gear box backward and tighten the black screw. After that you can move things around by hand.

The switch and wire leading to the metal base of the orrery are for a light in the sun. The batteries for this are underneath the blue plate in the black circular housing. There is a lamp bulb in the middle of the sun where it faces the earth/moon. As the earth/moon complex rotate around the sun, the sun also rotates on its own axis so the light always projects forward on the earth/moon. As a result, you can use the gear drive and the light in a dark room and watch, e.g., phases of the moon or eclipses as the earth/moon travel around the sun.

This thing was difficult to photograph. I tried show some of the gearing under the earth, and also the cam shaft. I’ve included four pictures taken inside, two outside, and one in the dark showing the shadow of the moon on the earth (a solar eclipse). Note how the moon and earth are half light and half dark (indicating e.g., day and night on the earth). These are not painted or decals on the earth or moon like you might see in an orrery without the lighting features found on this one. You can thus get some very nice shadow and lighting effects.

This item is new and fully functional. I would not recommend this for young children, since it can be easily broken. Also a finger inserted in one of the open gears could lead to a nasty hurt. Please note that there are no schematics or written materials included. While this would make a great educational demonstration for astronomy or earth science, there are no curriculum materials.

The distance from the earth to the end of the black box is about 20 inches (51 cm); from the base to the top of the sun about 10 ½ inches (27 cm). From the end of the earth to the moon is 4 inches (10 cm). Thus if you want to display this item (with the moon facing inward), you need a space that is 21 x 11 inches. But if you want to run the motor drive you need a much larger space, since the arm swings around the sun and the moon swings out from the earth. For this you need a circle with a diameter of about 4 feet (it is about 20 inches from the sun to earth and another 4 inches from the earth to moon; double this gives the diameter of the circle swept out by the orrery when it runs).

Also included at no additional charge is an educational CD Rom containing material from a book entitled "Conversations on Natural Philosophy in Which the Elements of That Science are Familiarly Explained" by Mrs. Marcet, edited by Rev. J. L. Blake, A.M., published in 1836.  The following chapters have been transferred along with relevant illustrations to the included CD Rom:

Conversation VI:  Astronomy:  Causes of the Earth's Annual Motion.  Of the planets, and their motion; of the diurnal motion of the Earth and Planets.
Conversation VII:  On the Planets.  Of the satellites or moons; gravity diminishes as the square of the distance; of the solar system; of comets; constellations, signs of the zodiac; of Copernicus, Newton, etc.
Conversation VIII:  On the Earth.  Of the Terrestrial Globe; of the figure of the earth; of the pendulum; of the variation of the seasons, and of the length of days and nights; of the causes of the heat of summer; of solar, siderial, and equal or mean time.
Conversation IX:  On the Moon.  Of the moon's motion; phases of the moon; eclipses of the moon; eclipses of Jupiter's moons; of the latitude and longitude; of the transits of the inferior planets; of the tides.

Marcet provides an exceptionally clear review of the motion of the moon about the earth, and of the earth/moon system about the sun.   These are nicely illustrated by the orrery.
The document is stored on the CD Rom in Microsoft Word format and can easily be printed.  Be sure to use a laser printer as this document is large and would drink an ink jet cartridge in no time.  Please note that the book itself is NOT included in this auction.  It can, however; be procured from dealers of antique books. 

The format of each section is that of a discussion led by Mrs. B. with her students Emily and Caroline.  The format is similar to the Socratic method.  Here is an excerpt from Conversation VII, On the Planets:

"Mrs. B.:  If the earth had no progressive motion in its orbit whilst it revolves on its axis, this would be the case; but as it advances almost a degree westward in its orbit, in the same time that it completes a revolution eastward on its axis, it must revolve nearly one degree more in order to bring the same meridian back to the sun.

Caroline:  Oh, yes!  It will require as much more of a second revolution to bring the same meridian back to the sun, as is equal to the space the earth has advanced in her orbit, that is, nearly a degree; this difference is, however, very little.

Emily:  That is extremely curious.  If the earth, then, had no other than its diurnal motion, we should have 366 days in the year.

Mrs. B.:  We should have 366 days in the same period of time that we now have 365; but if we did not revolve round the sun, we should have no natural means on computing years.  You will be surprised to hear, that if time is calculated by the stars instead of the sun, the irregularity which we have just noticed does not occur, and that one complete rotation of the earth on its axis, brings the same meridian back to any fixed star."

Also included is the book, "Space:  The Official Planetarium Book" by Sue Becklake.  This book with a forward by NASA has beautiful photographs with chapters starting with the Origins of Astronomy, Our Solar System, Inside Our Galaxy, Distant Galaxies, The Universe, Our Future in Space, and ending with Exploring Our Home.  The book is filled with stunning photographs and the material is written on a middle school level.  My fourth grade daughter had a project on the planets at school and became quite interested in the book, looking through all the pictures asking me questions about each and every planet - particularly why we can't go to the other planets and whether or not we can survive the visit.  This book combined with the planetarium and CD Rom will prove to be a wonderful way to introduce one of any age to the wonders of our universe.

Also included on the CD Rom is a web link to download a software program that enables you to experience the solar system on your computer.  The software program is also stunning as it allows you to move your mouse and travel through star systems as well as planet to planet observing their unique characteristics as well as their peculiar satellites.    This CD Rom is prepared and included at no extra charge to you.

Shipping and packing supplies will be $15 within the continental United States. For U.S. bidders, we prefer Paypal, but will gladly accept a cashiers check or money order. We also accept personal checks from bidders with at least 10 Ebay transactions and a strong positive feedback record, but will not ship until the check clears. International bidders are welcome, but we can only take Paypal (we are not set up for credit cards, and fees on international checks are excessive).

Australia:  $75.00  4 to 10 Day USPS Airmail Delivery

Austria:    $50.00  4 to 10  Day USPS Airmail Delivery

France:    $50.00  4 to 10 Day USPS Airmail Delivery

Germany: $50.00 4 to 10 Day USPS Airmail Delivery

Italy:        $50.00 4 to 10 Day USPS Airmail Delivery

Spain:      $50.00 4 to 10 Day USPS Airmail Delivery

UK:          $50.00 4 to 10 Day USPS Airmail Delivery

If your country is not listed above, please contact us for an international shipping quote prior to bidding.  If you do not have a Paypal account and wish to bid on this auction, please email the seller.