"Eyes On The Solar System" Combines Video Game Technology, NASA
Data
NASA is giving the public the power
to journey through the solar system using a new interactive
Web-based tool.
The "Eyes on the Solar System" interface combines video game
technology and NASA data to create an environment for users to ride
along with agency spacecraft and explore the cosmos. Screen
graphics and information such as planet locations and spacecraft
maneuvers use actual space mission data.
"This is the first time the public has been able to see the
entire solar system and our missions moving together in real-time,"
said Jim Green, director of NASA's Planetary Science Division at
the agency's Headquarters in Washington. "It demonstrates NASA's
continued commitment to share our science with everyone."
The virtual environment uses the Unity game engine to display
models of planets, moons, asteroids, comets and spacecraft as they
move through our solar system. With keyboard and mouse controls,
users cruise through space to explore anything that catches their
interest. A free browser plug-in, available at the site, is
required to run the Web application.
"You are now free to move about the solar system," said Blaine
Baggett, executive manager in the Office of Communication and
Education at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena,
Calif. "See what NASA's spacecraft see -- and where they are right
now -- all without leaving your computer."
Users may experience missions in real-time, and "Eyes on the
Solar System" also allows them to travel through time. The tool is
populated with NASA data dating back to 1950 and projected to 2050.
The playback rate can be sped up or slowed down. When NASA's Juno
spacecraft launched on Aug. 5, 2011, users could look ahead to see
the mission's five-year journey to Jupiter in a matter of
seconds.
Eye On The Solar System Screen
Shot
Point of view can be switched from faraway to close-up to right
"on board" spacecraft. Location, motion and appearance are based on
predicted and reconstructed mission data. Dozens of controls on a
series of pop-up menus allow users to fully customize what they
see, and video and audio tutorials explain how to use the tool's
many options. Users may choose from 2-D or 3-D modes, with the
latter simply requiring a pair of red-cyan glasses to see.
"By basing our visualization primarily on mission data, this
tool will help both NASA and the public better understand complex
space science missions," said Kevin Hussey, manager of
Visualization Technology Applications and Development at JPL, whose
team developed "Eyes on the Solar System."
"Eyes on the Solar System" is in beta release. It has been
demonstrated at science conferences, in classrooms and at the 2011
South by Southwest Interactive Conference in Austin, Texas.
Designers are updating "Eyes on the Solar System" to include
NASA science missions launching during the coming months, including
GRAIL to the moon and the Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity
rover.