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Astromaterials 3D’s first public release of an interactive 3D model of Apollo 11 Lunar Sample 10021,79, a small rock from the Contingency Sample, the very first sample picked up from the Moon. (NASA/Astromaterials 3D)
Erika Blumenfeld
Erika Blumenfeld
“Dare, Unite, and Explore” - Erika Blumenfeld
Go get your 3D glasses. You're going to want them!
Professional transdisciplinary artist working at the intersection of art, science, nature and culture .
Professional transdisciplinary artist working at the intersection of art, science, nature and culture .
Erika Blumenfeld is a professional transdisciplinary artist working at the intersection of art, science, nature and culture. Her research-based art practice is motivated by the wonder of natural phenomena and has led her to examine a range of subjects including astronomy, geology, planetary science, ecology, the environment, anthropogenic climate disruption, natural night sky preservation and light in its many forms. She often works in collaboration with scientists and research institutions, including NASA, the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, the McDonald Observatory, and the South African National Antarctic Program. Blumenfeld holds a BFA in Photography from Parsons School for Design and an MSc in Conservation Studies (with Distinction) from University College London. She is a Guggenheim Fellow, a Smithsonian Artist Research Fellow, and has exhibited widely in museums and galleries in the U.S. and abroad. Her work is featured in multiple books and resides in many museum collections.
Blumenfeld is currently artist-in-residence and Science-Principal Investigator on the Astromaterials 3D project at NASA’s Astromaterials Research & Exploration Science Division at Johnson Space Center where she is leading a team to create a 3D virtual astromaterials samples collection to bring high-resolution research-grade 3D models of NASA’s Apollo Lunar and Antarctic Meteorite collections to researchers and the public. Blumenfeld conceived the project in 2013, and she and the Astromaterials 3D team won a NASA ROSES PDART grant in 2016 to pursue the project. The project’s first public release of Apollo 11 lunar sample 10021,79 can be seen at the Astromaterials 3D project webpage. The project’s final website and 3D viewer will launch this summer.
High-resolution precision photography setup in the Lunar Laboratory at Johnson Space Center where Blumenfeld images the Apollo lunar samples for the 3D reconstructions of the rock’s exterior
At Johnson (NASA JSC), Blumenfeld is revolutionizing access to ARES’ vast collection of astromaterials. Funded by a three-year NASA grant, she is leading a team to create a 3D Virtual Astromaterials Samples database of 60 Apollo lunar and Antarctic meteorite samples.
The database’s goal? Combine high-resolution 3-D models of the sample’s exterior with X-ray computed tomography scans of the sample’s interior for 60 Apollo lunar and Antarctic meteorite samples from NASA’s Astromaterials Collections housed at Johnson Space Center to “create a whole characteristic of the sample that people can hold virtually.” While interior data for each sample is collected from XCT scanning, exterior modeling requires an even more involved custom process.
“I produce the 240 high-resolution precision photographs of each sample manually, imaging the rocks every 15-degrees vertically and horizontally through the small science observation port window in the nitrogen cabinet that the sample must remain inside. We had to invent a whole system to accomplish this, designing and building equipment that met the strict materials restrictions in order to be allowed into the cabinet,” she says.
Ultimately, the project is destined for the public domain via ARES’ curation website. The 3D models will allow researchers across the world to study the samples virtually from their computer prior to submitting sample request proposals. The models will also be available for the general public for outreach and education through various virtual apps and platforms.
Anaglyph version of the world’s first image-based 3D reconstruction of an Apollo lunar sample—3D glasses required! (Credit: These image data were produced at NASA’s Acquisition & Curation Office and was funded by NASA Planetary Data Archiving, Restoration, and Tools Program, Proposal No.: 15-PDART15_2-0041
"Apollo Sample 10021,79 (above), a subsample of parent rock 10021 which, in turn, is a subsample of the first Apollo sample collected (contingency soil sample 10010) has an extraordinary story to tell. It was formed when an energetic impact on the lunar surface sintered the fine lunar soil into rock through heat and pressure.
The soil that comprises this rock came from older impact events and volcanic processes that occurred over billions of years. Within its matrix are multi-colored glass spherules, indicative of impact melt formed in the atmosphere-free conditions on the Moon. The sample is 14.7 grams of the 842 pounds (382 kilograms) of rock and soil that the six Apollo lunar surface missions returned to Earth. The sample was on the ground directly outside the lunar module where Armstrong first placed his foot on lunar soil." source
Collecting this sample was the single most scientifically important task of the Apollo 11 mission. It represented the first sample of material brought back to Earth from any other world. It was so important as to be the first task that Armstrong completed after gaining his balance in the 1/6th gravity of the moon.
NASA called the sample a contingency sample. Right after uttering the famous phrase, "That's one small step for (a) man; one giant leap for mankind," Armstrong scooped it up with a Teflon bag attached to a metal rod. He then closed the bag, and with some difficulty, secured it in the pocket of his suit. The idea was that if something went wrong and he had to quickly return to the landing module, he would at least have a surface sample tucked safely in his pocket to return to Earth with.
“These rocks have incredible significant scientific value but they also have real cultural significance as well,“ said Blumenfeld. “This project helps make them more accessible to researchers but also to people beyond the research community. Their unique characteristics and composition, and the stories they tell of our Earth, Moon, and Solar System, become available to everyone.” (source)
Apollo 12's exploration of the lunar surface began on November 19, 1969, in the Ocean of Storms. During the second EVA, Astronauts Charles "Pete" Conrad and Alan Bean collected this Moon rock, known as Lunar Sample 12038 (displayed) along the edge of Bench Crater. A large rock weighing 327.5gm, it is among the 34.4kg collected by the Apollo 12 mission and the 382kg of combined lunar material collected by all six of the Apollo sample returns. Interact with Lunar Sample 12038 in 3D.
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