Smithsonian Starstruck: An Immersive Experience (Bordeaux)

Smithsonian Starstruck: An immersive Experience is a 40-minute shared virtual reality experience in which groups of up to 6 people explore the cosmos together. Each participant wears a lightweight wireless VR headset that presents a fully three-dimensional digital universe. As visitors move freely around a physical room, the visuals respond, creating the feeling of walking among the stars. Guided by a virtual host named Astro, the journey begins at the Fred Lawrence Whipple Observatory and travels to stars, exoplanets, the Pillars of Creation, a black hole and much more. Visitors interact with each other as digital avatars, adding to the shared, social nature of the experience. Built-in motion tracking and visual boundaries inside the headset help keep visitors safe. Starstruck was developed by the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory (SAO) and Fever, under the supervision of Smithsonian Enterprises. SAO content experts provided scientific oversight throughout development. The visuals and stories are based on data from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the European Space Agency (ESA), the Hubble Space Telescope, the James Webb Space Telescope, the Chandra X-ray Observatory and SAO research. Get closer to the Sun Take a quick detour to the Sun to witness solar flares 30 times larger than Earth. Hear the Sun's vibrations. Feel the energy that powers all life on our planet. These unique images were captured by NASA's Parker Solar Probe, the only spacecraft ever to travel this close to the Sun, and it is still making history today. Witness a spectacular explosion Watch the explosion of Betelgeuse, a red supergiant at the end of its life. As it explodes, it releases the essential building blocks of the cosmos: the raw material of stars, planets and even life. Reach new heights Explore the cosmos through the world's most powerful telescopes in an immersive experience built from real scientific data. Step inside the Hubble Space Telescope, the James Webb Space Telescope and the Chandra X-ray Observatory, and let yourself be guided through the secrets of the Universe.