[X] My Assistant

[dvandorn]

For those who maintain an interest in the Apollo moonwalks, Tom Hanks and the people he got to do the moonwalk sequences in his mini-series "From the Earth to the Moon" have put together an IMAX 3-D film called "Magnificent Desolation."

They have re-created highlights from the moonwalks, using the very effective techniques they developed for FTETTM, and filmed them in IMAX 3-D.

From what I've been able to tell, they shot in a "moon room" that provided very bright keylight and a properly dusty surface, with green screen all along the walls. In this film, moreso than in FTETTM, the *real* horizon features will show up in the backgrounds, as appropriate from the various portions of EVAs from different missions that they're using. (There is a very, very short shot in the trailer showing Jim Irwin falling down in front of Falcon, and Hadley Delta spun crazily in the background as the camera moved to get out of Irwin's way.)

Here's a link to the site. I am *really* looking forward to seeing this one -- it comes out in late September here in the U.S.

IMAX film "Magnificent Desolation"

-the other Doug

[dvandorn]

Well -- I just saw "Magnificent Desolation" at the local IMAX theater.

OUTSTANDING!

There is a lot of 3D flummery and a lot of interesting "floating frame" presentation of 2D television transmissions, pictures and films.

But the 3D computer-gen sequences of the LM in flight, and the combination CGI and live action footage of the guys actually walking on the Moon -- those were incredible.

There is a full sequence of the LM Falcon landing at Hadley-Appenine. The point of view shifts many times, and in each case the geometry of the landing site, the scale of the LM, and even the interaction between the invisible DPS exhaust and the lunar surface, are all absolutely perfect.

There is a *very* nicely done sequence, using the CGI backgrounds they developed for the Descartes site, where they showed one team of astronauts on foot, then another toting the MET behind them, and then another driving up on a Rover. And then, for a short period, they phased all three teams into the view at once... very, very impressive!

One of the final sequences is a fictional look at what might have happened with a dual failure of the Rover and one of the PLSSes. With tongue firmly in cheek, executive producer and narrator Tom Hanks created his fictional lunar explorers, named -- wait for it -- Tom and Hank. Their Rover hits the rim of a sharp, fresh (and, because it is directly downsun of them, totally unseen) crater, the electronics boxes in the forward section of the Rover are dashed against the rocks, and the LMP's PLSS is damaged by the shock of the accident.

They're 3 kilometers from the LM. And because the LMP's PLSS is dead, the comm circuit is out. They're too far from the LM for the relay through the LM to work, and the LCRU on the Rover is busted. So they can't talk to each other or to Houston, and Houston has no data on either man. (At one point, you hear the PAO say in the background, "TELMU confirms that flags were reported just before contact was lost...")

The LMP turns on his OPS, they hook up the Buddy Secondary Life Support System (B/SLSS) hose, to feed cooling water from the CDR's PLSS into both suits, and they walk back to the LM. When they get in range of the LM, comm comes back through the LM circuit, but only the CDR can talk to Houston.

It's handled exactly how such an event would have played out if it had actually happened. Very, very well done.

And then there's the finale -- as Aitken Base wakes up for the lunar day...

I recommend this film very, very highly.

-the other Doug