SPACE SHUTTLE ATLANTIS ATTRACTION - SM KENNEDY SPACE CENTER VISITOR COMPLEX
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KENNEDY SPACE CENTER VISITOR COMPLEX
SPACE SHUTTLE
ATLANTIS ATTRACTION
SM
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Bringing the Story of
Space Shuttle Atlantis to
Life with Interactive Media.
It was the last space shuttle to go into space, so it’s fitting that Kennedy Space
Center Visitor Complex constructed a $100 million, 90,000-square-foot facility to
honor one of the most complex machines ever built by mankind—Space Shuttle
Atlantis. Packed with interactive programs, educational games, flight simulators,
augmented reality viewers, and interactive media walls, the Space Shuttle Atlantis
attraction is equipped for the future.
“From telling the stories of the people who made space travel a reality to
simulating shuttle flight, docking, satellite capture, and even spacewalking,
we recreated the experience of being an astronaut.”
To make this attraction a reality, Unified Field Inc. immersed a team of writers,
researchers, designers, software engineers and 3D modelers in all things NASA.
Led by their Director of Programming, Jeff Miller and Senior Producer, Jason Bell,
the crew created 11 interactive programs that make it possible for anyone to
virtually walk in space, fly Atlantis or tour the International Space Station.
“Creating the Space Shuttle Atlantis attraction presented us with the unique
challenge of distilling a massive 30-year program into its most fundamental parts,”
said Bell. “From telling the stories of the people who made space travel a reality
to simulating shuttle flight, docking, satellite capture, and even spacewalking, we
recreated the experience of being an astronaut.”
Jeff Miller, Unified Field’s Director of Programming, added “Space flight is very
complex and the mission work done is exacting and time consuming. Our team
needed to translate the essence of this work into tasks and activities that can be
performed by everyday people with no training. However, it was essential that we
stayed truthful to the realities of space flight. Striking this balance was the key to
success.”
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A Seat in the Cockpit
Visitors can take a seat in the cockpit courtesy
of Atlantis 360°, another augmented reality viewer
designed and developed by Unified Field. The touch
screen viewer allows visitors to tilt, pan, zoom, and
investigate the entire flight deck, using footage from
a rotating 360° NASA gigapan camera developed
to take panoramic images of Mars. The scanner lets
guests examine ‘hotspots’ throughout the cockpit,
explaining the myriad of onboard buttons, levers,
switches and screens.
Another gigapan camera simulates the middeck,
providing guests with an astronaut’s eye view of the
crew’s sleeping quarters, kitchen and lockers. The
viewer allows guests to experience the astronaut’s
cramped living space right down to the toilet and the
airlock!
Augmented Reality:
Interacting With a Priceless Artifact
At the center of the attraction, the 153,996 pound Atlantis orbiter is displayed at a 43.21° angle that gives
visitors a view of the shuttle from the perspective of the International Space Station. To allow guests to explore
Atlantis without touching it, Unified Field created augmented reality viewers that can pan, scan, and investigate
the space shuttle to reveal hidden structures like the Orbital Maneuvering System, the cockpit, and the RS-25
cryogenic rocket engine.
Working with accurate 3D models, Sr. Interface Designer, Maureen Lin crafted an intuitive interface that
invites visitors to explore an expansive stream of images, text and video fly-ins. Just by pointing the viewer at
Atlantis, visitors can uncover features concealed under the shuttle’s exterior.
4 Walk Like an Astronaut: The Spacewalking Pod Ever want to walk in space? The Spacewalk Simulator will let you do just that. Housed in a domed enclosure and a motion sensing device, the game enables guests to don a digital spacesuit, replete with a photograph of themselves in the helmet, and venture out into the vacuum of space. A Sr. Programmer at Unified Field, Charles Yust, developed the game using a motion sensing device, which puts players right into the mission, using their own hands to repair the Hubble Space Telescope. When a player enters the pod, mo- tion sensing software detects their gestures and prompts them to select a mission. Simulated radio transmissions from an astronaut trainer guide visitors through tasks, encouraging them the entire way.
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Media Walls: The Story of the Space Shuttle and The International Space Station
Six 52” interactive touchscreen monitors place the complex material so that it could be understood by
history of the Space Shuttle Program right at your the average guest without overwhelming them. The
fingertips. Multiple visitors can simultaneously explore, real goal was to inform visitors while hoping to excite
learn and share stories about each mission, every them to learn more.”
astronaut, and the nail biting moments that kept the Another multi-touch screen interactive wall fo-
folks at mission control on the edge of their seats. cuses on the story of the International Space Station
Unified Field, working in collaboration with Design (ISS). Packed with information, interactive 3D models,
Island, produced an experience that brings the entire animations, and live feeds from space, the ISS Media
story of the Space Shuttle Program to life with imag- Wall provides both a real time as well as a historic
ery, video, text and 3D models and graphics. Guests look at the largest man-made object ever to orbit
can explore a range of topics and will be delighted to Earth. Live feeds allow guests to enter their zip code
learn about the first can of soda in space, the oldest to find out when the station will pass over their
man to go into orbit, and how NASA’s spinoff tech- houses.
nologies have improved life here on Earth. Personalized browsers let visitors investigate a
“The task of researching a 30 NASA year program day-in-the life of an ISS crew member and view
and everything that made it so successful from col- scientific experiments and expeditions. An interactive
lecting thousands of images, tons of video and hun- 3D animated model illustrates the entire process of
dreds of bios, not to mention learning all of NASA’s assembling the football field sized space station.
acronyms, was a challenge,” said Tim Steinouer, Pres-
ident of Design Island. “Working closely with Unified
Field, our team did a masterful job of checking sourc-
es, speaking with NASA staff, and condensing down
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The Closest You’ll Get to
Flying the Space Shuttle
Several other simulators round out Unified Field Inc.’s interactives at the Space
Shuttle Atlantis attraction. The Robotic Arm Simulator puts guests at the virtual
helm of one of the most sophisticated robotic arms ever constructed. Players are
tasked with capturing and releasing satellites, teaching visitors how to operate
the robotic arm. Other simulators challenge guests to land the shuttle or dock
it with the International Space Station, hopefully inspiring the next generation of
astronauts to take us to Mars and beyond.
About Unified Field Inc.
Unified Field Inc. is a pioneer in the field of interactive media. For over
20 years, the firm has crafted some of the most compelling and successful
multi-channel experiences and digital branding campaigns for visitor centers, cul-
tural institutions, non-profits and Fortune 500 Companies across the world. We
unify complex information with advanced technology, media and data to trans-
form virtual and physical worlds into aesthetic experiences that are user-centric,
intuitive and beautiful. We help our clients bring the promise of the future into
existence now. Recent clients include: the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex,
General Electric, Nelson Atkins Museum, Goldman Sachs, IAC Corporation, the
Franklin Institute, National Geographic, Western Union, The Federal Reserve Bank,
The National Park Service, Sony Wonder Technology Lab and many others.
Contact:
Eli Kuslansky
Tel: 212-532-9595 Ext. 222
Email: elik @unifiedfield.com
Marla Supnick
Tel: 212-532-9595 Ext. 209
Email: msupnick@unifiedfield.com
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