The piece shows an image of the earth, suspended in the sky. When seen from a distance, the viewer can experience the illusion of standing on the moon, looking up at the earth in the sky.
Height, angular size, shadow, period and weather are all taken into account to show the most accurate view possible. The image will be animated over the course of the week, showing the earth rotating in real time over seven days. If possible cloud information from weather satellites will be layered over the top of the pre-rendered animation.
At 50 m height, the image will need to be 5 m x 5 m to show the correct size of roughly 2 degrees, when viewed from 100 m away. This is around twice as large as the moon appears from earth.
Current challenges:
Orbital Mechanics
- Finding a year in which the actual moon will be least visible at night, and which the earth will be visible.
Engineering
- Structure. Current options include hiring a tower crane.
- It will have to withstand heavy winds, with the display acting as a large sail.
- Display. Should the image be a projection, or large LED screens similar to those used in concerts. Both have challenges with cost/illumination and weather proofing. These panels have 4500-8000 nits of brightness. 1 Nit is approximately 3.426 ANSI Lumen. Front projection will be brighter than rear projection.
- Power. If using LED panels at 5x5m the power requirement is 500w per meter squared. A 25 square meter display will required 12.5kw generator. A 20,000 lumen projector has around 3.7kw power requirement.
Originally envisioned for Burning Man, as the playa creates an analog of the moon's surface—it may be necessary to first attempt the piece at Nowhere, as the nearby mountains may simplify the project.
If placed at Burning Man, the ideal location would be on, or even past the trash fence, so no other visual distractions can be seen.
