Mill Valley, CA -- As part of the objective of the Mars Pathfinder Mission, NASA will use simulation application software built with WorldToolKit from SENSE8 Corporation to create an interactive photo-realistic environment of Mars. When the Mars Pathfinder spacecraft lands on July 4, it will release a single vehicle microrover -- Sojourner -- equipped with a pair of stereoscopic cameras and other sensors onto the Mars surface. These instruments will allow the Sojourner to investigate the geology, surface morphology, rotational, and orbital dynamics of Mars. The dual cameras will take stereoscopic images of Mars and send them back to the Mission Control at NASA, where these images will be converted into 3D-Martian terrain geometry using a WorldToolKit-based application. The application will then texture-map these images onto the 3D terrain and create a virtual Martian environment. This WorldToolKit application will allow NASA scientists to interactively explore the terrain in real-time and send the Sojourner to specific areas for further investigation. "NASA has developed applications using WorldToolKit for several scientifc research projects in the past, including the Viking 1 mission, which is being displayed at the Smithsonian Institution's National Air & Space Museum," said Daryl Rasmussen, telepresence researcher who heads the Mars Virtual Control Center at NASA Ames Research Center. "WorldToolKit enables Mission Control scientists to become 'virtual astronauts'. The NASA developed application not only allows us to view 3D images taken from Mars, it also enables us to fully immerse ourselves into a virtual Martian environment." "SENSE8 is very excited to once again contribute our technology to the field of scientific research," said Tom Coull, president of SENSE8. "WorldToolKit offers developers a rich set of 3D graphics and sound capabilities, which has enabled NASA to quickly prototype and develop this mission-critical application."
NASA Employs SENSE8 3D/VR Technology for Mars Pathfinder
June 27, 1997