Take a bit of sand, a little projection mapping, and what do you get? An interactive relief map that allows users to create terrain with their bare hands!
With the help of a machine-learning algorithm, the program uses the height of the sand to project images of mountains, plains, or bodies of water, which it draws from a database of satellite imagery.
It's exciting to imagine all the uses of this kind of technology, from enhancing game play to providing scientists with a tangible way with which to plan the terraforming of another planet or moon. It also can be used for something much closer to home: helping people find a deeper appreciation of our own planet, Earth.