Red Mars.

I opened my eyes upon a strange and weird landscape. I knew that I was on Mars; not once did I question either my sanity or my wakefulness. I was not asleep, no need for pinching here; my inner consciousness told me as plainly that I was upon Mars as your conscious mind tells you that you are upon Earth. You do not question the fact; neither did I.

Edgar Rice Burroughs, A Princess of Mars

When I first purchased my VR headset, I viewed it as primarily an advanced gaming system.  Now that I'm using it on a regular basis, it's obvious that it's really more of an alternative computing platform that's capable of delivering a wide range of services and experiences*.  

As an example, there's an extensive selection of virtual reality experiences in the Oculus download library: an immersive tour of the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone; a 3D view of Shibuya Crossing, Tokyo's busiest intersection; visits to the world's great cities; and trips to the Arctic, the Pyramids, the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, and a myriad of other opportunities.  Most recently, they've added a VR view of Mars from the perspective of the Perseverance rover - and it's breathtaking.

Assembled by CreatorUp video services founder Hugh Hou from 142 HD pictures taken by the probe's Z-Mast camera, the virtual view of the Martian surface is incredible in its realism. 

Screen grabs really don't do justice to the experience, it was startling to have that strong an impression of standing on the surface of another planet  - or, more accurately, on Perseverance's chassis, probably someplace quite close to the chip with Karli and my names on it. I thought I was joking, but it turns out that we actually do have seats with a good view.

- Sid

 

* But, to be honest, not necessarily better than a standard desktop setup.  For example, it's a lot easier to find your cup of tea for a drink when you're not wearing a headmount to browse the Internet.