Occasionally, fandom can go a bit too far. There’s a big difference between owning a costume of a character on your favorite show, and harassing the actor who plays your favorite character online. But for the most part, fandom is a good, creative force in the galaxy.
Just check out what one fan did for his university!
Dr. Hubert Zitt doesn’t hide the fact that he’s a huge, giant science-fiction nerd.
He loves Star Trek , he loves Star Wars , and he doesn’t care who knows. In fact, he’s such a fan that he is known as much for lecturing on things like the physics of Star Trek as he is for teaching electrotechnology.
Zitt’s university, the Zweibrücken University of Applied Sciences, is familiar with his pop culture exploits.
He’s a frequent contributor to the university’s Christmas lectures, the most recent of which was titled “The Power — Mystical Power in Star Wars and Jediism.”
And he put his fandom on display when he decided to give the university’s observatory a makeover.
Frankly, it’s easy to see that the observatory needed a fresh coat of paint.
Of course, Dr. Zitt didn’t work alone on the project. He enlisted the help of a few willing and able students, his father-in-law, and painter Klaus Ruffing.
The group spent about 120 hours and 400 euros on the project, not including Ruffing’s fee.
And, just before the start of a new semester, the shining new R2-D2 dome made its debut on campus.
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It’s easy to see how the new paint job has put Dr. Zitt’s university on the map.
The team can certainly be proud of their work, which is sure to bring the university some attention. R2-D2 is one heck of a goodwill ambassador!
No surprise, the observatory has become something of a destination for Star Wars fans.
I mean, can you ask for a better keepsake and photo op if you’re traveling with your jawa costume?
And there’s something quite fitting about using the world’s most recognizable astromech droid as the basis for an observatory.
Just look at this amazing pic by photographer Jens Theobald, where the stars appear to be swirling around a glowing R2-D2. It wouldn’t look out of place on the big screen!
It’s not clear how long the new paint job will last, however.
It sounds like plans are for it to be in place permanently, but of course only time will tell — if it requires a lot of upkeep, you never know. So let’s enjoy it while we can!
h/t: Pfälzischer Merkur
