This week, we are installing a number of new technology-based exhibits for the Wonders of the Universe | Space Chase Gallery exhibition at Adventure Science Center in Nashville, Tennessee.  One of the exhibits we collaborated on includes a large-scale multitouch table that allows visitors to explore and learn about the Electromagnetic Spectrum in new ways.  Taking advantage of the table’s super-wide screen format, we’ve created a digital representation of the EM Spectrum from radio waves to gamma rays.  Visitors can move images across the table to see how they are imaged in each waveform and tabs on each image allow them access information about what they are seeing.

With a 100″ surface and an 86″ viewable area, it is one of the largest contiguous multitouch tables yet developed.  The screen has a 16 x 5 aspect ratio and a 2304 x 800 pixel high-resolution screen. The table can support over 50 simultaneous touch points, allowing several people to interact with the table at the same time.

The exhibit displays various celestial and terrestrial images in a variety of wavelengths. NASA images of the sun and various nebulae can be seen in all wavelengths . . .

. . .  as well as common and iconic objects, specially photographed. For example, a birthday cake with lit candles, a toy robot, an alarm clock, and even a hand holding an iPhone are seen in visible, infrared, ultraviolet, and x-ray. The images that appear here along with high-resolution images of the 100″ table can be found on the Ideum Flickr site.

The custom software was developed with Adobe Flash and Ideum’s own GestureWorks framework, which allows Flash developers to easily develop their own custom multitouch applications. GestureWorks will be available for sale to other developers in early December.  The table design is based on Ideum’s commercially available MT-50 multitouch table.

The Space Chase exhibition opens to the public on November 7th at the Adventure Science Center in Nashville, Tennessee.

Last week, I was part of a group of amateur astronomers who attempted to capture NASA’s LCROSS mission impact from Chaco Canyon. As I mentioned in an earlier post , I first tried my hand at astrophotography the weekend before the event.

The photograph below was taken just after the spacecraft impact early in the morning on October 7th. Unfortunately, the event was not visible from any of our telescopes. (You’ll have to visit NASA’s LCROSS site to see the effects of the impact.)

Ideum is featured in latest issue of Santa Fe’s Trend Magazine.  ”Trend explores and celebrates the unique and fascinating intermingling of cultural influences, tradition, and innovation in art, architecture, and design—in Santa Fe, the Southwest, and beyond.”  The article talks about our multitouch table and other interactive exhibits in the magazine’s Business Profiles section. You can see the article here.

We just learned that the KQED Quest website won the Best Use of Web 2.0 / New Media Award at the Jackson Hole Wildlife Film Festival.  We worked closely with the KQED Quest team to develop this site, which makes extensive use of Google Maps and Flickr photos “mashed” into visually rich map applications.

You can visit the KQED Quest Website or learn more about the project on the Ideum portfolio site. Other finalists in the category were Expedition: Blue Planet, Save Our Seas, and Wild Earth.

Chaco Culture National Historic Park is a great place for amateur astronomy. Its remote location, climate, altitude and facilities have made it a popular destination for night sky viewing. This weekend I was lucky enough to try my hand at astrophotography. Having (literally) photographed nearly every place in Chaco Canyon over the last decade (see Traditions of the Sun), it seemed natural to try to point my camera skyward.

The photograph below is my first attempt at astrophotography. Early Friday morning at 5AM, I’ll be trying again. I’m hoping to capture NASA’s LCROSS impact of the moon. This mission will measure the concentration of water ice in the permanently shadowed areas of the moon. Ideum developed an exhibit for NASA’s Lunar Robotics program, so we’ve been following this all along. (Update 9-5-09: NASA Just posted a viewing guide for the event.)

The photograph above was taken with a Canon 20D. Amateur astronomer Brad Hamlin set up the 18″ telescope. This image was shot with a 20mm eyepiece and 2x Barlow lens. And, yes, I did clean the image up a bit in Photoshop. Below are some other shots I took at Chaco Canyon earlier in day and the next morning.

The amazing architecture of the great house of Pueblo Bonito.

The beautiful sandstone veneer of Pueblo Bonito.

We saw elk on the way out of the park Sunday morning.  This view was from the dirt road (NM 57) in the southern part of Chaco Culture.

If you’re interested in seeing more photographs of Chaco Canyon. I’ve posted quite a few to the blog over the last few years. Check out the category “Chaco Culture National Historical Park.” You can see more photographs, including high-resolution versions of images that appear in this post, on Ideum’s Flickr photostream.