Wanderers (2014 film)

Last updated
Wanderers
Wanderers (2014 short film) title.jpg
Title card
Directed by Erik Wernquist
Written by Carl Sagan
Based on Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space
Produced byErik Wernquist
StarringAnna Nerman
Camilla Hammarström
Hanna Mellin
Narrated byCarl Sagan
Edited byErik Wernquist
Music byCristian Sandquist [1]
Release date
  • October 11, 2014 (2014-10-11)
Running time
3:50 minutes
CountrySweden
LanguageEnglish

Wanderers is a 2014 Swedish science fiction short film created by the digital artist and animator Erik Wernquist. [2] The film depicts actual locations in the Solar System being investigated by human explorers, aided by hypothetical space technology. Of the film's fifteen scenes, [3] Wernquist created some using solely computer graphics, but most are based on actual photographs taken by robotic spacecraft or rovers combined with additional computer-generated elements.

Contents

Wanderers is narrated by astronomer Carl Sagan, reading from his 1994 book Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space . [4] [5]

Plot

The film begins with a group of nomads around 10,000 BC, travelling through the Middle East on Earth. Shining clearly above them in the darkening twilight sky are the five naked eye "wandering stars" in the Solar System which might be visited some day by descendants of the human wanderers. [6] The film then cuts to the future and shows a large interplanetary spacecraft leaving Earth's orbit, carrying space colonists on their way to another planet or moon. [7]

Mars

Erik Wernquist adds human explorers to this photo taken by NASA's Spirit rover on Mars to create the "Blue Sunset" scene in Wanderers. MarsSunset.jpg
Erik Wernquist adds human explorers to this photo taken by NASA's Spirit rover on Mars to create the "Blue Sunset" scene in Wanderers.

Other than Earth's Moon, [8] [9] [10] no other body in the Solar System has been explored [11] and examined for possible future human colonization more intently than Mars. [12] [13] [14] In Wanderers, Wernquist starts with NASA photographs and crafts three scenes showing the possible Martian future: in the first, the cabin of a theorized space elevator descends down its cable, transporting supplies to a Mars colony below, [15] in the second, workers in space suits wait near the edge of Victoria Crater for approaching dirigibles, [16] and in the third, a group of hikers (who are presumably accustomed to watching red sunsets on Earth) enjoy the sight of the Martian sky glowing blue around the setting Sun. [17]

Saturn and its moons

Wanderers shows adventurers wearing bird-like wings flying over the liquid methane lake Ligeia Mare on Saturn's moon Titan. Ligeia Mare in false color (PIA17031).jpg
Wanderers shows adventurers wearing bird-like wings flying over the liquid methane lake Ligeia Mare on Saturn's moon Titan.

Wanderers makes good use of the wealth of information and images returned by the NASA / ESA Cassini–Huygens mission: [18] one third of its scenes depict either Saturn or one of its moons. One scene gives an extreme close-up view of Saturn's rings - the perspective is from inside the plane of the rings, looking up from within the jumble of water ice chunks that compose the rings to a person floating just above the plane. [19] The final scene (discussed in more detail below) shows the rings at a distance, lit up by the Sun behind them, casting a luminous glow on Saturn's nighttime cloud tops that Wernquist refers to as "ringshine." [20]

In a scene on Saturn's moon Titan which is only made imaginable by Titan's relatively low levels of gravity, [21] its thick, hazy atmosphere, [22] and a not-yet-discovered hyper-efficient thermal insulating material, humans fly above the moon's liquid methane sea Ligeia Mare using wings that are approximately the same size - relative to their bodies - as bird wings. [23] The view of a spacecraft moving through the salt water crystals ejected from geysers on Saturn's moon Enceladus [24] is a reminder that a liquid ocean beneath its icy surface could potentially provide an environment capable of sustaining some form of life. [25] A chain of human settlements on Saturn's moon Iapetus are portrayed on the peaks of its equatorial ridge, each covered with an enormous and (apparently) transparent dome that does not obstruct the view of Saturn and its rings. (Since the orbit of Iapetus is more inclined relative to the rings than any of Saturn's other major moons, Wernquist helpfully adds that the beautiful view "would make for some highly valuable real estate.") [26]

Jupiter, its moon Europa, and Miranda (moon of Uranus)

Compared to Earth's gravity, Jupiter's massive bulk creates such suffocating surface gravity that Wanderers could only show space adventurers near the Great Red Spot by depicting them in weightless orbit above it. Jupiter, Earth size comparison.jpg
Compared to Earth's gravity, Jupiter's massive bulk creates such suffocating surface gravity that Wanderers could only show space adventurers near the Great Red Spot by depicting them in weightless orbit above it.

Wanderers does not specify whether any of the space explorers it depicts are governmentally-sponsored astronauts, cosmonauts, or taikonauts, if they are alternately commercial astronauts, space flight participants, or solely space tourists. [27] Wernquist calls them simply "passengers", "people," and "hikers," and none of the spacecraft transporting them carry the insignia of a space agency or a privately funded space enterprise. [28] [29] Regardless of their official designation, the people shown in the two Jupiter scenes and the one scene showcasing Uranus and its moon Miranda must be referred to as "adventurers."

In a scene shown from orbit above Jupiter, a spacecraft's cargo bay doors open to reveal a tethered adventurer beginning a spacewalk, with the Great Red Spot visible below. [30] We also see adventurers walking across the surface ice on Jupiter's moon Europa, [31] and who, in so doing, might also be walking above extraterrestrial microbes. (Like Saturn's moon Enceladus, astrobiologists are very focused on the possibility that Europa could harbor life. [32] ) Another group of adventurers BASE jump off of a cliff on Miranda, the smallest gravitationally-rounded moon orbiting the planet Uranus. [33] The cliff in question, Verona Rupes, may be 5 - 10 kilometers tall. Combined with Miranda's low gravity, Wernquist estimates the jumpers could enjoy a free fall of perhaps 12 minutes before engaging a small rocket to brake their fall.

The "Terrarium", a hollowed-out, inhabited asteroid

An O'Neill cylinder is somewhat similar to the hollow "Terrarium" asteroid in Wanderers: both are large hypothetical space habitats which rotate to create artificial gravity. Spacecolony3edit.jpeg
An O'Neill cylinder is somewhat similar to the hollow "Terrarium" asteroid in Wanderers: both are large hypothetical space habitats which rotate to create artificial gravity.

The film includes a dramatic illustration of possible in situ resource utilization: it depicts a hollowed-out Main Belt asteroid which could serve as a habitat for colonists and a space station for travelers who venture beyond the orbit of Mars. [34] The interior cavity of the asteroid / habitat / station consists of a human-constructed, self-contained ecosystem, complete with pressurized, breathable air, land and soil, bodies of water, and clouds rotating around a periodic source of artificial sunlight. [35]

Wernquist concedes that his depiction of a terraformed asteroid "is by far the most speculative part of this short film," but also says that he included it "to visualize the possibilities of human engineering and construction." [36] He calls the asteroid a "terrarium," applying the name used by Kim Stanley Robinson in his hard science fiction novel 2312 .

The final scene: Saturn's "ringshine"

Images like this from the Cassini spacecraft (a mosaic of actual photographs with exaggerated color) inspired the final scene, "Ringshine - (Saturn)." Saturn eclipse exaggerated.jpg
Images like this from the Cassini spacecraft (a mosaic of actual photographs with exaggerated color) inspired the final scene, "Ringshine - (Saturn)."

On Saturn, human-made airships are shown in the distant clouds, somewhat similar to the HAVOC crewed airships contemplated by NASA for a possible mission to Venus. The airships are framed by the planet's colossal rings. On one of the ships, a female explorer gazes out into the distance, wearing an insulated jacket, a fur hood, and a protective mask. As the clouds of Saturn cast reflections on her helmet, which conceals her mouth, she smiles in wonder. [37] Carl Sagan's narration concludes as he states:

Maybe it’s a little early. Maybe the time is not quite yet. But those other worlds — promising untold opportunities — beckon. Silently, they orbit the Sun, waiting. [38]

Development

Wanderers is based on the visions of its director, Erik Wernquist, regarding humanity's future explorations of outer space. The film's visuals, animated by Wernquist, are digital recreations of real places in the Solar System; though speculative, the human technology depicted in the film derives from pre-existing scientific concepts and ideas. [2] [39] The film's backgrounds are built from map data and/or from photographs taken by NASA. [5] [40] The visuals are inspired by the works of science fiction writers Arthur C. Clarke and Kim Stanley Robinson, as well as illustrator Chesley Bonestell. [39]

With the permission of Ann Druyan, the wife of astronomer Carl Sagan, Wernquist added excerpts of Sagan's narration of his book Pale Blue Dot throughout the film. [39]

Release and reception

The film was released on the video-sharing website Vimeo on October 11, 2014, and was officially uploaded to YouTube on August 4, 2015.

The short film has received extremely positive reviews since its release. Leonard David, a columnist on Space.com, called it a "marvelous production". [4] Amy Shira Teitel of the website Nerdist said the film was "brilliantly realistic" and that it "might even be better than Interstellar ." [2] Dante D'Orazio of The Verge wrote that the film was a "stunningly beautiful journey across our solar system", and that while it "doesn't have a traditional story, the visuals and score (paired with Sagan's words) will make you, too, dream of the day when we become a multi-planetary species." [5]

Related Research Articles

<i>Pioneer 11</i> Space probe launched by NASA in 1973

Pioneer 11 is a NASA robotic space probe launched on April 5, 1973, to study the asteroid belt, the environment around Jupiter and Saturn, the solar wind, and cosmic rays. It was the first probe to encounter Saturn, the second to fly through the asteroid belt, and the second to fly by Jupiter. Later, Pioneer 11 became the second of five artificial objects to achieve an escape velocity allowing it to leave the Solar System. Due to power constraints and the vast distance to the probe, the last routine contact with the spacecraft was on September 30, 1995, and the last good engineering data was received on November 24, 1995.

<i>Pioneer 10</i> NASA space probe launched in March 1972

Pioneer 10 is a NASA space probe launched in 1972 that completed the first mission to the planet Jupiter. Pioneer 10 became the first of five planetary probes and 11 artificial objects to achieve the escape velocity needed to leave the Solar System. This space exploration project was conducted by the NASA Ames Research Center in California. The space probe was manufactured by TRW Inc.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saturn</span> Sixth planet from the Sun

Saturn is the sixth planet from the Sun and the second-largest in the Solar System, after Jupiter. It is a gas giant with an average radius of about nine-and-a-half times that of Earth. It has only one-eighth the average density of Earth, but is over 95 times more massive. Even though Saturn is nearly the size of Jupiter, Saturn has less than one-third of Jupiter's mass. Saturn orbits the Sun at a distance of 9.59 AU (1,434 million km) with an orbital period of 29.45 years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Natural satellite</span> Astronomical body that orbits a planet

A natural satellite is, in the most common usage, an astronomical body that orbits a planet, dwarf planet, or small Solar System body. Natural satellites are colloquially referred to as moons, a derivation from the Moon of Earth.

<i>Cassini–Huygens</i> Space research mission sent to the Saturnian system

Cassini–Huygens, commonly called Cassini, was a space-research mission by NASA, the European Space Agency (ESA), and the Italian Space Agency (ASI) to send a space probe to study the planet Saturn and its system, including its rings and natural satellites. The Flagship-class robotic spacecraft comprised both NASA's Cassini space probe and ESA's Huygens lander, which landed on Saturn's largest moon, Titan. Cassini was the fourth space probe to visit Saturn and the first to enter its orbit, where it stayed from 2004 to 2017. The two craft took their names from the astronomers Giovanni Cassini and Christiaan Huygens.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Iapetus (moon)</span> Moon of Saturn

Iapetus is the outermost of Saturn's large moons. With an estimated diameter of 1,469 km (913 mi), it is the third-largest moon of Saturn and the eleventh-largest in the Solar System. Named after the Titan Iapetus, the moon was discovered in 1671 by Giovanni Domenico Cassini.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Phoebe (moon)</span> Moon of Saturn

Phoebe is the most massive irregular satellite of Saturn with a mean diameter of 213 km (132 mi). It was discovered by William Henry Pickering on 18 March 1899 from photographic plates that had been taken by DeLisle Stewart starting on 16 August 1898 at the Boyden Station of the Carmen Alto Observatory near Arequipa, Peru. It was the first natural satellite to be discovered photographically.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Moons of Saturn</span> Natural satellites of the planet Saturn

The moons of Saturn are numerous and diverse, ranging from tiny moonlets only tens of meters across to the enormous Titan, which is larger than the planet Mercury. There are 146 moons with confirmed orbits, the most of any planet in the solar system. This number does not include the many thousands of moonlets embedded within Saturn's dense rings, nor hundreds of possible kilometer-sized distant moons that were seen through telescopes but not recaptured. Seven Saturnian moons are large enough to have collapsed into a relaxed, ellipsoidal shape, though only one or two of those, Titan and possibly Rhea, are currently in hydrostatic equilibrium. Three moons are particularly notable. Titan is the second-largest moon in the Solar System, with a nitrogen-rich Earth-like atmosphere and a landscape featuring river networks and hydrocarbon lakes. Enceladus emits jets of ice from its south-polar region and is covered in a deep layer of snow. Iapetus has contrasting black and white hemispheres as well as an extensive ridge of equatorial mountains among the tallest in the solar system.

The naming of moons has been the responsibility of the International Astronomical Union's committee for Planetary System Nomenclature since 1973. That committee is known today as the Working Group for Planetary System Nomenclature (WGPSN).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carolyn Porco</span> American planetary scientist

Carolyn C. Porco is an American planetary scientist who explores the outer Solar System, beginning with her imaging work on the Voyager missions to Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune in the 1980s. She led the imaging science team on the Cassini mission in orbit around Saturn. She is an expert on planetary rings and the Saturnian moon, Enceladus.

The New Frontiers program is a series of space exploration missions being conducted by NASA with the purpose of furthering the understanding of the Solar System. The program selects medium-class missions which can provide high science returns.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lunar and Planetary Laboratory</span> Lab at University of Arizona

The Lunar and Planetary Laboratory (LPL) is a research center for planetary science located in Tucson, Arizona. It is also a graduate school, constituting the Department of Planetary Sciences at the University of Arizona. LPL is one of the world's largest programs dedicated exclusively to planetary science in a university setting. The Lunar and Planetary Lab collection is held at the University of Arizona Special Collections Library.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Exploration of Saturn</span> Overview of the exploration of Saturn

The exploration of Saturn has been solely performed by crewless probes. Three missions were flybys, which formed an extended foundation of knowledge about the system. The Cassini–Huygens spacecraft, launched in 1997, was in orbit from 2004 to 2017.

<i>Pale Blue Dot</i> (book) 1994 book by Carl Sagan

Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space is a 1994 book by the astronomer Carl Sagan. It is the sequel to Sagan's 1980 book Cosmos and was inspired by the famous 1990 Pale Blue Dot photograph, for which Sagan provides a poignant description. In the book, Sagan mixes philosophy about the human place in the universe with a description of the current knowledge about the Solar System. He also details a human vision for the future.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Discovery and exploration of the Solar System</span>

Discovery and exploration of the Solar System is observation, visitation, and increase in knowledge and understanding of Earth's "cosmic neighborhood". This includes the Sun, Earth and the Moon, the major planets Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune, their satellites, as well as smaller bodies including comets, asteroids, and dust.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Subsatellite</span> A satellite that orbits a natural satellite

A subsatellite, also known as a submoon or a moonmoon, is a "moon of a moon" or a hypothetical natural satellite that orbits the moon of a planet.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Outline of the Solar System</span> Overview of and topical guide to the Solar System

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to the Solar System:

<i>The Day the Earth Smiled</i> 2013 photograph of Saturn and Earth

The Day the Earth Smiled is a composite photograph taken by the NASA spacecraft Cassini on July 19, 2013. During an eclipse of the Sun, the spacecraft turned to image Saturn and most of its visible ring system, as well as Earth and the Moon as distant pale dots. The spacecraft had twice taken similar photographs in its previous nine years in orbit around the planet. The name also refers to the activities associated with the event, as well as to the photographic mosaic created from it.

References

  1. "Credits". WANDERERS - short film. Retrieved 17 February 2016.
  2. 1 2 3 Teitel, Amy Shira (1 December 2014). "Erik Wernquist's "Wanderers" Is a Beautifully Realistic Future of Space Exploration". Nerdist. Retrieved 20 February 2016.
  3. "Gallery (thumbnail images from all 15 scenes linked to larger images and scene descriptions)". "Wanderers" film official website. Retrieved November 12, 2016.
  4. 1 2 David, Leonard (1 December 2014). "Epic Short Film 'Wanderers' Envisions Humanity's Future in Space". Space.com. Retrieved 21 February 2016.
  5. 1 2 3 D'Orazio, Dante (30 November 2014). "Wonderful short film imagines the day when we conquer the solar system". The Verge. Retrieved 19 February 2016.
  6. "Gallery / 'The Open Road - (Earth)' {1st scene images and description}". "Wanderers" film official website. Retrieved November 3, 2016.
  7. "Gallery / 'Leaving Home - (Earth)' {2nd scene images and description}". "Wanderers" film official website. Retrieved November 3, 2016.
  8. "The Apollo Missions". NASA website. 16 March 2015. Retrieved November 17, 2016.
  9. Wörner, Johann-Dietrich (June 19, 2015). "New ESA Head Wörner: 'We Could Build All Kinds of Things with Moon Concrete'" (Interview). Interviewed by Olaf Stampf. Hamburg, Germany: Spiegel Online International. Retrieved November 9, 2016.
  10. Jaggard, Victoria (October 11, 2016). "Haunting Pictures Show Earth Rising Over the Moon: Japan just released high-resolution pictures from its Kaguya orbiter, including some that have never been seen before by the public". National Geographic. Archived from the original on October 12, 2016. Retrieved November 18, 2016.
  11. Ram, Arun; Kumar, Chethan (September 24, 2014). "Isro's Mars mission successful, India makes history". The Times of India. Mumbai, India. Retrieved November 12, 2016.
  12. Obama, Barack (October 11, 2016). "Barack Obama: America will take the giant leap to Mars". CNN. Retrieved November 8, 2016.
  13. Aldrin, Buzz (June 13, 2013). "The Call of Mars". The New York Times. Retrieved November 8, 2016.
  14. Chang, Kenneth (September 27, 2016). "Elon Musk's Plan: Get Humans to Mars, and Beyond". New York Times. Retrieved November 18, 2016.
  15. "Gallery / 'Mars Elevator - (Mars)' {6th scene images and description}". "Wanderers" film official website. Retrieved November 8, 2016.
  16. "Gallery / 'Cape Verde - (Mars)' {7th scene images and description}". "Wanderers" film official website. Retrieved November 8, 2016.
  17. "Gallery / 'Blue Sunset - (Mars)' {8th scene images and description}". "Wanderers" film official website. Retrieved November 10, 2016.
  18. "Cassini-Huygens". European Space Agency web portal. Retrieved November 17, 2016.
  19. "Gallery / 'Ringsurf - (rings of Saturn)' {5th scene images and description}". "Wanderers" film official website. Retrieved November 12, 2016.
  20. "Gallery / 'Ringshine - (Saturn)' {15th scene images and description, 1st, 3rd and 4th images}". "Wanderers" film official website. Retrieved November 12, 2016.
  21. Tate, Karl (March 12, 2015). "How Humans Could Live on Saturn's Moon Titan (Infographic)". Space.com. Retrieved November 17, 2016.
  22. Owens, Brendan (May 10, 2015). "Starwatch: Titanic weather". The Guardian. London. Retrieved November 18, 2016.
  23. "Gallery / 'Ligeia Mare - (Titan, moon of Saturn)' {13th scene image and description}". "Wanderers" film official website. Retrieved November 15, 2016.
  24. "Gallery / 'Enceladus Limb - (Enceladus, moon of Saturn)' {4th scene images and description}". "Wanderers" film official website. Retrieved November 8, 2016.
  25. Sneed, Annie (June 28, 2016). "Excitement Builds for the Possibility of Life on Enceladus". Scientific American. Retrieved November 16, 2016.
  26. "Gallery / 'Iapetus Ridge - (Iapetus, moon of Saturn)' {9th scene image and description}". "Wanderers" film official website. Retrieved November 13, 2016.
  27. Marinova, Polina (November 15, 2016). "What Billionaire Richard Branson Thinks of Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk". Fortune magazine. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  28. Chang, Kenneth (February 9, 2015). "A Business Plan for Space". New York Times. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  29. Pasztor, Andy (August 4, 2016). "Space-Exploration Startup Scores U.S. Regulatory Coup: Moon Express approved to send a tiny, unmanned scientific spacecraft to the moon in the second half of 2017". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  30. "Gallery / 'The Great Red Spot - (Jupiter)' {3rd scene images and description}". "Wanderers" film official website. Retrieved November 3, 2016.
  31. "Gallery / 'Europa View - (Europa, moon of Jupiter)' {12th scene images and description}". "Wanderers" film official website. Retrieved November 3, 2016.
  32. Strauss, Gary (October 24, 2016). "If Europa Has Life, This Scientist Will Help Find It: Astrobiologist Kevin Hand's search for life on other planets is centered on one of Jupiter's ice moons". National Geographic. Archived from the original on October 27, 2016. Retrieved November 23, 2016.
  33. "Gallery / 'Verona Rupes - (Miranda, moon of Uranus)' {14th scene images and description}". "Wanderers" film official website. Retrieved November 15, 2016.
  34. "Gallery / 'Excavation - (unnamed asteroid, Main Asteroid Belt)' {10th scene images and description}". "Wanderers" film official website. Retrieved November 15, 2016.
  35. "Gallery / 'Terrarium - (unnamed asteroid, Main Asteroid Belt)' {11th scene image and description}". "Wanderers" film official website. Retrieved November 15, 2016.
  36. "Gallery / 'Excavation - (unnamed asteroid, Main Asteroid Belt)' {10th scene description}". "Wanderers" film official website. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
  37. "Gallery / 'Ringshine - (Saturn)' {15th scene images and description}". "Wanderers" film official website. Retrieved November 15, 2016.
  38. "Film". WANDERERS - short film. Retrieved 10 February 2016.
  39. 1 2 3 "What Is This?". WANDERERS - short film. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
  40. "Wanderers – Short Film About Space Exploration Narrated by Carl Sagan". Twisted Sifter. December 2014. Retrieved 21 February 2016.