The Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) of NASA and Google have launched Access Mars, a free immersion experience on the Red Planet.
It is available for use (https://accessmars.withgoogle.com/) on all desktop and mobile devices and on virtual reality / augmented reality (VR / AR) headphones. That includes virtual reality devices based on mobile devices on Apple and Android.
The experience was adapted from JPL’s OnSight software, which helps scientists plan rover movements on Mars, and even hold virtual meetings on the planet.
Images from NASA’s Curiosity Explorer provided terrain for OnSight, allowing users to wander through the actual dunes and valleys scanned by the spacecraft. Since launching JPL scientists in 2015, OnSight has made studying Martian geology as intuitive as turning heads and walking.
Now, Access Mars allows anyone with an Internet connection to take a guided tour of what those scientists are experiencing. A simple tutorial explains what the Curiosity rover does and details its impressive landing in 2012. Users can also visit four sites that have been central to the mission of the NASA Mars Science Laboratory: Curiosity landing site; Murray Buttes; Marias Pass and Pahrump Hills. In addition, the rover’s last location on the slope of Mount Sharp will be periodically updated to reflect the ongoing progress of the mission.
In the first three locations, users can focus on objects of scientific interest, including rock outcrops and mud cracks. Katie Stack Morgan, a JPL scientist on the MSL mission, will explain the evidence of habitability Curiosity has unearthed, NASA reports.
More than anything, Access Mars offers a visceral impression of what it would be like to walk alongside Curiosity, wandering the lonely red desert. “We have been able to take advantage of VR and RA technologies to bring our scientists to Mars every day,” said Victor Luo, project manager for JPL’s Ops Lab, who led the collaboration. “With Access Mars, everyone can travel” there.
Access Mars was built using data compiled by JPL and built on WebVR, an open source standard, in an effort to expand access to immersive experiences. Google’s Creative Labs team was looking for innovative uses for VR and encouraged developers to experiment using their tools.
Source: http://bit.ly/2z8zRJd
