Jupiter's storms

NASA’s Juno mission will explore Jupiter to, among other things, give new insight into its enormous lightning-filled storms and how deep into this cloud-covered planet they go. This exploration is the inspiration for ‘Beneath the Surface’, an installation by Daniel Goods for the Jet Propulsion Lab first shown at the Pasadena Museum of California Art. 

Experiencing Jupiter

The installation sees a artificially created cloud fill a large exhibition space and positioned beneath the cloud are a series of concealed, computer-controlled infrared lights. Invisible to the naked eye, the light produced can only be seen through electronics, including many cell phone cameras. Realizing a consistent, aesthetically-pleasing cloud posed a particular challenge. The exhibition uses ultrasonic misters to convert regular tap water into a dynamic, buoyant blanket of mist in combination with a computer controlled fan system programmed to create the right movement and aesthetic.

As a visitor enters the space, thunder can be heard. The accompanying ‘lightning’ however goes unseen until a visitor examines the cloud through their cellphone’s camera. Then, they can see the infrared lights flashing in time with the sounds of thunder. Just as the Juno mission uses special detectors to peer through the clouds of Jupiter and reveal the depths of its storms, visitors can "see" lightning storms underneath this dynamic surface.

“I was worried how the scientists would respond to this as it’s not exactly what they do. But I brought a bunch of scientists and they all stayed there for half an hour watching it and playing with it. They seemed to feel it captured an aspect of what they did in a way they would have never imagined before.”

- Dan Goods