At my 2019 college reunion, there was an exhibit room which celebrated physicist Richard Feynman’s life and work: “The Mind’s Eye: Richard Feynman in Word and Image.” In a small area of that room, there were a dozen or so chairs for viewing a multimedia presentation by donning a VR headset. Well, this latest space station VR tour sounds more interesting and immersive (high definition, 3D, 360-degree).
Another way to get a taste of space for those of us who’ll never get into Earth orbit.
• Space.com > “Houston, you are go for a spacewalk: ‘The Infinite’ launches VR space station tours” by Robert Z. Pearlman (December 21, 2021) – “You look down you see planet Earth, you look around, you see the gigantic space station and the astronauts — there’s something vertiginous about it.”
(image caption) The Infinite, a VR experience [in a 6,000-square-foot event space which up to 150 people can explore together at a time] offering interactive, immersive tours of the International Space Station, is now open in Houston, Texas, marking its premiere in the United States.
(image caption) “Astronauts” exploring the International Space Station: Visitors to The Infinite in Houston wear Oculus VR headsets to walkthrough a full-scale reproduction of the orbiting complex.
(image caption) There are 65 VR clips to discover in The Infinite, spread across four chapters, which are positioned around (both inside and outside) the International Space Station.
Image credits: collectSPACE.com
Welcome to The Infinite, an immersive VR installation that transports participants from the ground — in this case, downtown Houston — to Earth orbit for a half hour walking tour of the space station, followed by an eight-minute seated spacewalk that is like nothing anyone who is not an astronaut has seen before.
… the world’s first look at a spacewalk filmed in virtual reality. … follow a lighted path into a virtual room where virtual seats line up with real life cushioned chairs. “… you spend eight minutes being transported on a gigantic robotic arm in the vacuum of space.”
Perhaps this immersive VR installation eventually will arrive in other cities like LA and Chicago?
Related posts
• VR in the house? (7-12-2021) – my 3 comments 9-23-2021 ff re VR space experiences, noting Felix & Paul Studios, the creative team behind the space-based footage in The Infinite.