ʻImiloa Astronomy Center

ʻImiloa Astronomy Center in Hilo, on the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo campus overlooking Hilo Bay, unites modern astronomy with Hawaiian culture and history. Conceived in 2001 by founding director George Jacob and opened in February 2006, it centers on the connection between scientific study of the sky and older Polynesian voyaging traditions and Hawaiian knowledge of the heavens. Its bilingual Hawaiian-English exhibits present both astronomers’ work and Pacific navigation by the stars, remembering the first Polynesians to reach Hawaiʻi as “our first astronomers.” Its planetarium, architecture, gardens, and participation in the Sagan Planet Walk extend that theme across the site.

Hilo, Hawaii · United States