All Mode
Astronaut Terry W. Virts recently tweeted this amazing pic. Terry has been at the ISS (International Space Station) since November. His text reads:
“SAFER” virtual reality simulator- the jet pack we can use to get back to ISS if we floated away during a spacewalk.
What’s going on in the picture?
He has a large VR headset strapped to his face. And instead of a mobile phone which has become standard nowadays, there’s a laptop attached!
He is using virtual reality to simulate the jet pack used during spacewalks. He is training safely inside so that he can expertly use the real thing if needed.
NASA is usually at the cutting-edge of technology. This is a big, bulky piece of equipment that probably costs tens of thousands of dollars. This large screen may provide a larger field of view (FOV), but it’s a good bet that the overall experience is less finely-tuned than what one could get from an Oculus DK2 or Samsung Gear VR for a few hundred dollars. This is one of the key reasons for the emerging virtual reality revolution: the cost of VR has decreased by orders of magnitude.
We would love to try out this VR jet pack simulation, especially in zero gravity!