The Cosmos commission was awarded to mathematician and programmer, Diato Manabe. He spent time with the scientists at Jodrell bank looking at pulsar data, which is essentially cosmic background microwave radiation – the ghost from the big bang. His research company, Rising Maniacs, works across technology and innovation, the art is in the coding. Diato builds his own software and devices to push the boundaries of what’s possible with technology. In this instance, he used the pulsar data to inform the audio and visual experience.

Daito created an application where members of the public could, via an interface in front of the projection control area, dial into the radio frequency the telescope was listening to. Managing the technical programming and projection, Bluman developed custom Notch modules and exposed parameters that could be controlled through the app. This was then translated into the visual imagery that was projected onto the telescope via Notch.

Cutting edge technology made it possible create an accurate model of the telescope and projection map the entire structure using the new d3 gx series media servers. The server offered the level of accuracy required to map the intricate structure and Notch allowed the team to be more creative in the moment whilst not being locked into just playing back whatever they had already rendered.

bluedot festival has produced the following splendid video going behind the scenes at the event and exploring the processes required to bring the projection masterpiece to life…