Hi John,
I have two examples for you: ViewSpace and WebbVR.
NASA has been funding us to create
ViewSpace and share it with museums for over 20 years now, but we've also been producing content aimed at an off-site audience in recent years. We are the science operations center for the Hubble Space Telescope and the James Webb Space Telescope when it launches later this year, as well as an archive for the data from over a dozen NASA missions. Therefore ViewSpace content is focused on the beautiful images we and other NASA connected sites produce about our universe, particularly beyond the confines our our solar system. That said, we've got a pretty decent chunk of content on Earth Science as well that was funded by NASA's Earth Observing System.
Originally we sent out CDs in the mail, now it goes out via streaming video and digital interactives. It used to have a fee associated with the digital signage software we used to use for distribution, but we made a switch to a streaming video model a couple years back so there is no cost. That switch also opened up ViewSpace to be used off-site as well. In addition to the collections, which are effectively video exhibits that self-update with new content, we have created a
video library and a set of
digital interactives. The library contains all of the videos available for use at home, school, or anywhere else. It actually makes a good resource for museum run programming as well since specific videos can be pulled up on demand. The digital interactives take our content and add a level of interactivity to it, letting people shift between images that look at things in slightly different ways. People can compare images at their own pace, and there is a narrative woven in along with some clues to help people with the context of objects they may have never seen before.
We are actually developing a way for the digital interactives to be used more effectively in the museum and designing a new style of interactives. That's on top of releasing new content every week as we keep up with the latest science, improving accessibility, and trying to grow the number of people reached. (Self-promotion: If any museums want to know more about
using ViewSpace at their site or want a free account to run an exhibit, let me know. It's high-quality, NASA content that museums from tiny one room spaces up to the Smithsonian use, updates with new content weekly with no effort on your end, and the only costs are the internet connection you already have, a monitor, and an old computer.)
WebbVR is a virtual reality experience that lets people explore space and the science and engineering of the James Webb Space Telescope. We've heard from many places that VR isn't great for museums--people lose so much of the social experience that brings them in the first place. However it is a great experience at home, and we are looking into working with libraries. Many libraries are trying to help their patrons experience new tech like VR and people often come for individual needs rather than social needs.
WebbVR is effectively an exhibit that could never exist in the physical world. It allows people to fly around the solar system, through a protoplanetary disk, in and out of a distant galaxy, and amongst exoplanets around another star. There are a ton of interactive things to do like building a new planet, shooting stars into a supermassive black hole, and searching for undiscovered planets. Everything is built with an educational frame of mind, though engagement is at the forefront. It also creates a place to explore while dealing with barriers like the vast empty expanses of space that can't be represented in a physical environment. Once again, because we are NASA funded, the experience is free to download if you have the hardware. We recently put together a
10 minute talk on WebbVR for the International Astronomical Union's Communicating Astronomy to the Public 2021 conference that is available online if you want some more info. Again, I'm happy to answer questions about it for anyone.
Tim Rhue II
trhue@stsci.edu------------------------------
Timothy Rhue II
Senior Informal Education Specialist
Space Telescope Science Institute
Baltimore MD
He/Him/His
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Original Message:
Sent: 07-06-2021 08:09 PM
From: John Chiodo
Subject: Seeking Interesting and Innovative Examples of Online Exhibits
Hello all,
This fall I'm teaching a course on Emerging Museum Technology. I'm looking for good examples of online or app-based exhibits for off-site use. I already have plenty of examples of virtual exhibits or content that has been repurposed for online use from an actual exhibit. I'm searching for other formats such as:
- Heritage site AR
- Educational games
- Scavenger hunts
- Citizen Science
- Teaching tools
- Public space exhibits
- etc.
Thank you all very much,
John
John Chiodo