Space exploration has had a deep impact on the way a lot of us see the world and think about our art. So I can’t wait for this Saturday’s Yuri’s Night Bay Area, which will bring a convergence of bleeding-edge music, art, technology, science, and visualism to a 12 hour-long party on NASA’s airfield outside San Francisco. We’ll be bringing some of the best of this event to you all around the world. Read or subscribe to RSS for our special minisite to make sure you don’t miss a thing, wherever you are on the planet; updates will continue live through the event and in the couple of weeks afterward:

yuricdm.com: Yuri + CDM + music + motion
yuricdm.com RSS feed

If you’re near the Bay Area, let us know if you’re coming to the event. We’d love help with photos, video, and coverage. And if you’re involved in a Yuri’s Night somewhere else in the world, let us know about that, too.

Here’s just a sample of the visualist angle at Yuri’s Bay Area:

It’s a huge disappointment: the best eye candy on earth causes blindness. And it’s a little hard to see, even as our closest star. Enter NASA, with the solution: the first-ever stereo three-dimensional images of the sun.

STEREO: First 3-D Images of the Sun

NASA’s Solar TErrestrial RElations Observatory (STEREO) satellites have provided the first three-dimensional images of the sun. For the first time, scientists will be able to see structures in the sun’s atmosphere in three dimensions. The new view will greatly aid scientists’ ability to understand solar physics and there by improve space weather forecasting.

STEREO, baby!

You’ll need red-and-cyan glasses, which you can buy or make. (See NASA’s great guide to how this works and where to buy / how to make.) The good news: in addition to still images, there’s video, too. I dare you to make an all 3D set. And, clearly, if you do, you’ll need some NASA sun imagery in there. I mean, come on.

Has anyone tried the red-and-cyan approach with tools like Jitter and Processing? I’m working now with a system that doesn’t require the dual image, instead using 3D color mapping, which should be easier to apply to shaders. More soon. For now, enjoy the great hyrogen-helium fusion reactor that is the engine that gives us life.