The Brief
4 crew members will be the first to travel one way to Mars in a project called Mars One. By researching & collaborating with candidates, I created Rainmaking on Mars, a multiplayer musical instrument created for the harsh 7-month journey where the crew may encounter psychological risks. By using sounds of rain & nature, the instrument creates a calming aura & a sense of play for the mission while facilitating social interaction in the uncertain & dramatic event.
The instrument enables learning & sharing, requiring hands-on interaction required to aim in psychological & social needs in the confined environment. Travelling to Mars will challenge the human condition. The instrument will have to be adaptive to constraints, such as space, gravity, & limitation of sounds.
I used research through design & ethnographical research methods to understand the group I was designing for in a future scenario that has yet to be fully tested, then I used iterative prototyping to propose a solution. This project still continues to develop and was installed at the Ars Electronica Festival 2017 in Linz, Austria.
Detailed research documentation can be found here.
Work in progress documentation can be found here.
"I can easily imagine that sphere floating around the Mars Transfer Vehicle emitting calming rain sounds. It will certainly help me sleep soundly."
- Alison Rigby, Mars One candidate
Thank you to:
Alison Rigby, Ryan MacDonald - Mars One Candidates
Hildegard Westerkemp - Sound Recordist
Nicolas Marechal - Unit Leader
Joel Lewis - Mentor, Interaction Designer