Do you remember putting a shell to your ear to "listen to the ocean"? What if you could walk into a massive shell and listen to the sounds of space—or rather, a symphony built out of the sounds of satellites in space? This was what StudioKCA proposed when commissioned by NASA to design a travelling pavilion where the invisible sounds and trajectories of 19 NASA satellites orbiting the Earth could be experienced. Building on this childhood memory, the firm created a nautilus-shaped structure using 3,500 square feet of water-jet cut aluminum panels scribed with over 100 “orbital paths” that fit together and bolt to a curved framework of aluminum tubes. The structure defines a 30-foot diameter inner chamber with a large oculus at its center. By employing an array of speakers within this space, programmed by composer Shane Myrbeck to map, translate, and then broadcast the sounds of these satellites, the team created a “3D sound chamber” visitors can enter into and listen to the sounds of NASA’s satellites as they fly over, under, and around them in real time.
