NIF Laser Fusion in Fulldome
xRez Studio was given a unique opportunity to spherically shoot and document the largest engineering project in the US, the National Ignition Facility at Lawrence Livermore Labs in Northern California. One of the least publicly known efforts in the search for future energy sources, but most monumental in terms of ramifications, NIF has entered a crucial testing phase after 20 years of design and construction, hoping to achieve a historic benchmark this year. Enormous in it’s implications for relatively clean, safe, and controllable inertial fusion energy, it is the world’s largest optical device, consisting of 192 of the world’s most powerful lasers, all concentrated on a central target chamber, which in effect create a microcosm of the surface of the sun.
The spherical panoramas were captured at a high 35k resolution and then formatted in Autodesk Maya for an immersive fulldome presentation at the impressive Morrison Planetarium in the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco, where NIF chief Ed Moses presented the images to a TEDxSF event audience. Special thanks go out to John Densberger at LLNL.
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BBC/Brian Cox Tours NIF:
Ed Moses TEDx Talk:
I have been shooting stereo panoramas for a couple of years now. We have a way to align and view these that works pretty well.
John Densberger asked if we could shoot stereo of the NIF Chamber inside. We do have synchronized cameras that I have mounted to shoot stereo panoramas. NIF is a great subject.
Sounds great John, this would be an excellent subject for stereo. Of course in stereo the zenith can be a bit tricky for the dome, you would have to carefully compose it on location to keep the poles off screen and plan for a single dome tilt.
Incredible shots and an even more incredible project and project team.