Santi Animation

GoAnimate.com: Santi cartoon animation by Santiago Castillo

Like it? Create your own at GoAnimate.com. It's free and fun!



The Hubble telescope, arguably the greatest success we have had in space since the first landing on the moon, is one of the most important instruments we have been able to scientifically come up with since Galileo’s original creation of the telescope. Here in Denver’s Museum of Nature and Science, the IMAX showing of Hubble, takes the audience through a magnificent journey that opens their minds to the possibilities in space. By opening the minds of the audience, the people are able to see the possibilities offered by the artifact, in this particular case the artifact being the Hubble Space Telescope. Since the Hubble is in fact a human creation, and it is also intended to communicate, it can be seen as a cultural artifact. It is intended to communicate, not only through its many findings, but also by influencing humanity to achieve greatness by going above and beyond.

Apart from being a crucial tool of communication, the Hubble, is also a Rhetorical Artifact because of its cultural significance. Not only in the United States, does the Hubble telescope look to induce change in the minds and behaviors of humanity, but it does so all around the world. This vital tool, through the work of many has been able to offer us something Galileo never even dreamed was possible. Upon building on his creation, we have come across several intriguing findings. We are able to better understand the mysteries of the black holes in space and we are also able to see stars forming in the “pillars of creation” which is one of the most acclaimed images taken in the Eagle Nebula. However, as successful as the Hubble may seem to appear right now, it is important to include that it wasn’t always this way and only through the hard work of many American Heroes was it able to become this engineering marvel of culture and communication.

Upon first launching the Hubble, over twenty years ago problems seemed to appear almost instantaneously. Some of the technical problems involving lens issues and computer glitches were not letting the Hubble to operate to its full capacity. Since then, there have been multiple missions to space visiting the telescope, trying to correct what is wrong with it. While every mission has been able to bring back positive results, there is always something that can be fixed or enhanced, which provoke these new missions. The astronauts who embark on these missions are perceived as American Heroes. Astronauts are professionally trained individuals whom are trained carefully and satisfactorily in human spaceflight. They are extremely smart and very diligent in their work. We perceive them as American Heroes because they are putting their lives on the line and plunging into the unknown willingly. They are going on these missions for humanity, to find new theories, explore new territories, or fix existing problems, thus we acknowledge this and are grateful for it.

The IMAX showing of the Hubble telescope is perhaps the most interesting view and analysis of the object there has been thus far, allowing viewers much like myself who are not really interested in science a chance to look deeper and find out how marvelous this creation really is. It is through this showing that I gained interest in the Hubble Telescope, and now behold it not only as a revolutionary science instrument, but also as a masterpiece of art. Much like any other cultural artifact, such as a famous painting by Leonardo Da Vinci, or a sculpture by Pablo Picasso, Galileo’s telescope has been able to influence mankind and change perceptions of the world. In the IMAX film we see how much there is about our vast universe that we don’t know, and realize how much we could learn. Leonardo Di Caprio, a famous actor most of us have seen in big Hollywood pictures, narrates the IMAX viewing on Hubble. By getting someone with the status of Leo to narrate, this film is sending the message that popular culture should be more involved in this matter, as opposed to leaving NASA and all the science nerds to take care of this aspect in society. Through, IMAX’s viewing of Hubble, our eyes are opened to the endless possibilities in space, as well as the importance of the Hubble Space telescope, and we are extended an invitation to engage in this movement.

NASA Justifies Hubble through IMAX

The IMAX Theatre at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science attempts to justify both the spending of taxpayer money and risking the lives of astronauts who attempt to repair an ailing Hubble Telescope. IMAX effectively cements their argument using incredible images projected by Hubble that have never been seen by the human eye. The largest screen and sound system theater in the world cannot help but make the audience feel good and forget about the costs of keeping the colossus telescope alive. IMAX also uses Leonardo Dicaprio, a well known figure, to narrate their argument. Rather than using an anonymous narrator, IMAX felt it would be much more effective to use a popular celebrity. In an attempt to get their message across through another source like the media, NASA uses IMAX to simply blow away their audience to the point that they cannot help but be on board with the progress of the Hubble Telescope. With a struggling economy many Americans are asking if funding the Space Shuttle Program worth our while. After the tragic loss of seven astronauts aboard the Space Shuttle Columbia many are asking if the program is safe enough to keep it running. Through the enormous IMAX Theater presentation, NASA will tell you ABSOLUTEY!

The IMAX starts off with images of the Orion Nebula taken by Hubble. Hubble’s amazing images of the Orion Nebula are not ordinary pictures. The advanced lense of the telescope allows the audience to maneuver around the nebula and see the images like they are actually there. You could see the bowl inside the nebula carved out by the vicious 500 mile per hour winds. The audience then gets a close up view of newborn stars, otherwise known as “tadpoles”. Inside each star’s cocoon is an infant solar system. The advanced camera of the telescope shows planets forming around these “baby stars”. The IMAX explains that these three dimensional photos could be the answer to how life began; that right there would justify the tax pay dollars and the risk of our men up above the Earth’s atmosphere. Hubble took 10 years and 10,000 people to be completed. And the IMAX convincingly shows that it would be a mistake to simply let its battery die, only to eventually burn up in Earth’s scorching atmosphere.

Orion’s Nebula was not the only amazing image shown by IMAX. Hubble captures the death of stars, forming a shape resembling a butterfly as it burns out the last of its life. The 119’ X 96’ screen projects the mysterious black hole serving as the garbage disposal of the universe. Hubble even has the ability to measure the temperature of every star through an infrared censor, determining which stars are young and which ones are dying. NASA makes it clear that without the country’s investment in Hubble, none of these discoveries would ever have been possible.

The IMAX show also lets the audience know how truly small our unique planet is with respect to the rest of the universe. It takes you on a journey through our neighboring solar system   Andromeda. Other incredible space explorations you take include the Virgo Cluster and Messier87. Hubble even has images of light that crossed Earth’s path billions of years ago. One cannot help but be in awe of what Hubble has done for space exploration.

There is no more affective place to try and get this message across than in an IMAX Theater. Through an almost overwhelming screen and elite sound system, IMAX has the ability to capture the heart and minds of any ordinary person. IMAX also has credibility as they have done documentaries on important issues in the past (ex: the award winning documentary “Dolphin”).

IMAX also legitimizes NASA’s cause using a very popular figure in Leonardo Dicaprio. He is an actor that is on top and in the prime of his career. People love to watch Dicaprio amaze on screen and that is no different with Hubble. Using a low profile narrator does not capture your audience in the same way that a movie star does. Knowing that Dicaprio is narrating the show surely attracts a larger audience.

IMAX’s documentary “Hubble” gives the audience a prospective of how rare and tiny our planet actually is. NASA convinces doubters about the Hubble program through imagery, advanced technology, and a credible speaker. Hubble has the ability to answer questions such as how do planets form, where did we come from, and how do the chemicals that make us form. NASA urges you that space exploration must go on or else we will never answer some of the world’s deepest questions.

Going Full Circle In the Vast Expanse of Space.

Hubble Revised on Prezi