The Approach
Veronica Keff
December 4th, 2024
Major: Astrophysics, minor in Mathematics
Genre/Medium: Laser Show; BEYOND Laser System Software at Fiske Planetarium. Original animation created in ToonSquid, with Psyche’s trajectory data compiled by Paige Arthur
About the work:
“The Approach” is a laser show that tells the story of the Psyche spacecraft’s trajectory around asteroid 16 Psyche. Starting with an idea of a digital painting, the piece evolved from an abstract depiction of orbits around 16 Psyche to a 2 minute laser show at Fiske Planetarium showcasing the spiral path of the probe around the asteroid.
Why lasers? I wanted to reference how Psyche communicates with mission control on Earth via NASA’s DSOC (Deep Space Optical Communications) experiment. This allows spacecraft traveling the solar system to communicate with Earth via the near-infrared laser transceiver fitted on the spacecraft itself and receiving ground stations on Earth (e.g. Palomar’s Hale Telescope).
Making “The Approach” was a very rewarding experience and a substantial challenge. I made the animation using real trajectory data (courtesy of Psyche GNCS Engineer Paige Arthur) and tediously keyframing the spacecraft to follow the spiral trajectory. This animation method later presented issues with trying to upload the animation into Fiske Planetarium’s BEYOND laser system, but with the help and perseverance of several Fiske employees including myself, we managed to fix these issues and uncovered a simpler way of making custom animations in the laser system.
I hope that this project can serve as a way to elevate future laser shows and that people may appreciate the beautiful and surreal nature of Psyche’s voyage through the solar system through light and time, the same simple ingredients as what NASA sees of the mission.
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