For some reason, former Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin has a very active virtual reality life. Most known for being one of the first people to land on the moon, he’s also a holographic tour guide for Destination Mars, an augmented reality tour of Mars.
Lately, his mini hologram’s been delivering an important message to people in the Bay Area: “Get your ass to Mars.”
At the Game Developers Conference from February 27 to March 3 in San Francisco, VR company 8i made a 3D hologram of Aldrin to greet attendees as they arrive. People could even take pictures with the former astronaut.
8i recently announced an augmented reality app called Halo, which allows people to express themselves with funny holograms and will be launched later this year. Users can add holograms to their environment and take videos and photos for sharing with friends. The demo at the conference used 8i’s Holo beta app on Tango.
Aldrin’s hologram is making a comeback at SXSW from March 10 to 19 in Austin. This time, Aldrin will be taking viewers on a journey from the moon, where he once actually landed, to Mars.
As previously reported, the “Destination: Mars” exhibit at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in Florida takes visitors through an interactive, holographic tour of the red planet, with Aldrin and Mars Curiosity driver Erisa Hines as tour guides to lead people around sites like the Gale Crater and other geological features.
Check out Aldrin’s message here.
