Follow the footsteps of Armstrong and Aldrin on Daden's Second Life simulation

PR Log (Press Release) – Jul 10, 2009 – A new virtual reality version of the Apollo 11 landing has been created in Second Life (TM) by Birmingham UK based virtual world specialists Daden Limited. The simulation presents Tranquility Base and the Eagle lander, and allows visitors to follow the footsteps of Armstrong and Aldrin, whilst looking at the videos and photos they took, and finding out about the science experiments they left behind.

The simulation has been built on the Daden Space sim, which Daden will be using for new space and data visualisations. The whole sim has been landscaped to represent the Moon, and with Second Life settings turned to midnight you can even see the Earth hanging low above the Moon's horizon.

Visitors to the sim start at a space station arrival centre, high above the surface. Here they can view a Moon globe marking all the Apollo landing sites, and get kitted out in their space-suit ready for their EVA (Extra-Vehicular Activity). They can also download and attach a Heads Up Display (HUD)  which will give them information about the mission as they walk around. Touching the teleport drops visitors to the Moon's surface.

Tranquility Base occupies the north-east corner of the sim, a short 40m walk from the arrival point. A detailed copy of the Lunar Module (LM) towers over the virtual astronauts. Standing by the ladder triggers a video in the HUD showing Armstrong's famous “one small step”.

Daden Managing Director David Burden said “For us this build really came alive when we discovered a map which showed exactly where the astronauts actually walked, the tracks they took around the LM, the terrain features, the routes to the science experiments, and where they took photographs and panoramas from. We were able to bring this map into our recreation of the Moon, and use it to guide not only our layout of rocks and craters, but also to key in the photos and show visitors where to walk.”

Clicking the Map button on the HUD brings up this map as a huge overlay on the Moon's surface. The tracks walked by the astronauts are then clearly visible and can be followed by the virtual astronauts. Clicking the Camera button on the HUD then shows you where key photographs were taken from, and as you approach those points the images and a short description appears in the HUD.

David continues, “This combination of map, original photography and the virtual build creates a very immersive experience. The spacesuit gives you the heavy breathing sounds and bounding moon-walk. To be able to follow Armstrong's tracks out to the far panorama point (about 50m away), and then look back at the Lunar Module model whilst also seeing the photographs he took from that spot gives you a real feel for the whole experience. Before doing this simulation all those photos and videos felt very disjointed, but now you can get a great sense of how they relate and what the astronauts actually did on the moon.”

The simulation also includes the various scientific experiments they placed on the Moon – and clicking on each brings up more information, images and links back to relevant web pages. And for a finale you can head back to the Lunar Module, touch its rocket nozzle and watch the ascent stage blast off and head back up into orbit to rejoin the Command Module.

David concludes, “For us this build is about three things. First it's a celebration of Apollo 11, and the tremendous achievements made by the astronauts and the rest of the Apollo programme. Second it shows how virtual worlds like Second Life can be used to create immersive educational experiences of any type. Finally it's about the ability to track people and objects in real-time and bring that data into virtual worlds* - and about looking to the future. When I was eight years old I watched the moon landings on a black and white TV in the school hall. When humans return to the Moon in the next decade or so it will be possible for people to be in a simulation just like Daden Space and watch in real-time as an astronaut avatar emerges from the landing module and steps out onto the moon, whilst also watching the live video feed in a HUD. Whether the viewers are mission engineers, scientists, family relatives or just members of the public, this has got to represent a whole new level of involvement and experience of the return to the moon.”**