Centered in the Universe is a fulldome presentation that premiered the evening of October 29, 2006, at the "Galactic Gala," which marked the reopening of the renovated Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles.

The 33-minute planetarium program utilizes a Zeiss Universarium star projector and an innovative laser video projection system developed by Evans & Sutherland to create an immersive environment.

The presenter walks to the center of the theater and flourishes a glowing ball, representing a star, about the size of a grapefruit, which he/she alternately lights and dims to accent a description of how various cultures interpreted celestial phenomena such as the cycle of day and night.

These drawings also morphed into 3D objects to demonstrate how Galileo's observations transformed our perception of the planets and helped establish the Copernican model of the Solar System.

The film transports the audience through a series of environments, such as Mount Wilson Observatory in the early 1920s, when Edwin Hubble discovered the true nature of the Andromeda Galaxy and the expansion of the Universe.

The animators visited the dome of the 100-inch (2,500 mm) telescope at Mount Wilson Observatory to photograph the building before constructing it in Maya (software) as it might have appeared in 1925 when Edwin Hubble worked there.

"Dixon insisted on authenticity; from the location of planets in the sky to the kind of a feather in Galileo's quill pen, everything was meticulously researched," according to Executive Producer Ann Hassett.

[2] Animators studied photographs provided by Galileo expert Dava Sobel to ensure that architectural details of the astronomer's house were modeled correctly.