Artist Trevor Paglen’s reflective sculpture called Orbital Reflector has been launched into low Earth orbit on board a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.
Paglen alongside the Center for Art + Environment at the Nevada Museum of Art, have collaborated with aerospace firm Global Western and aerospace company Spaceflight Industries to design and manufacture the reflective sculpture. Housing the sculpture inside of a small satellite called CubeSat, the satellite once in low orbit will release the Orbital Reflector to be inflated into a diamond-shaped sculpture that measures 30 metres in length. With a reflective surface that will shine light from the sun back down to Earth, the reflection from the sculpture will be visible with the naked eye.
“As the twenty-first century unfolds and gives rise to unsettled global tentions, Orbital Reflector encourages all of us to look up at the night sky with a renewed sense of wonder, to consider our place in the universe, and to reimagine how we live together on this planet,” the Nevada Museum of Art said about the project.
As the reflective sculpture orbits Earth, the known coordinates will be able to be tracked via an astronomy app called Star Walk 2. Orbital Reflector will remain in space for several weeks until it re-enters the Earth’s atmosphere and disintegrates.
To learn more about Orbital Reflector, click the link below.
