It is an immersive dive into the seabed offered by Grand Large, a new augmented reality experience to discover from June 4 at Nausicaá, the National Sea Center in Boulogne-sur-Mer.
A world first for this type of site, since this aquarium invites you to admire virtual species that mingle with other living fish, facing a 100 m2 bay which reveals a 10,000 m3 basin, the largest in Europe. And the experience, which we were able to test in preview, is both poetic and striking.
Microsoft Hololens 2 helmet screwed on the skull, the visitor-diver lets himself be guided by a 2-meter leatherback turtle to meet the peaceful sunfish, the energetic swordfish and its peaks at 110 km/h , bottlenose dolphins, boobies and lion’s mane jellyfish. The highlights being the face-to-face encounter with an impressive whale shark that dominates the 14-meter-long room, accompanied by Bryde’s whale, a colossal 15-meter marine mammal.
All of them come here with their real size to superimpose themselves on reality and give the 3D effect of diving with them in front of you. Two species that it is impossible to admire outside their natural habitat. A total of nine species are gathered here for a session of about 10 minutes. An activity included in the price of the visit to this site which celebrates its 31st anniversary this year.
Raising awareness of the challenges of the high seas
Beyond the contemplative aspect offered by such technology, Nausicaá wanted to develop an educational story, which children can enjoy from the age of 8. “We are not talking about attraction here, since we have always claimed not to be a simple aquarium. We carry out scientific missions here and offer educational materials. This Grand Large experience is for us a way to multiply the awareness message on the high seas and its challenges. You should know that we call the high seas the areas located more than 370 km from the coast and which cover 60% of the surface of the oceans. However, there are a lot of activities in these areas, but there are not really binding rules”, underlines Christophe Sirugue, general manager of Nausicaá.
The idea is therefore to make the general public aware of the impact of climate change and the intensive fishing carried out by men across the globe. Because these giants are no less threatened than other representatives of aquatic fauna. Above all, the high seas where these species live are still full of mysteries – it is less well mapped than the moon, we recall – and conceals an ecosystem that is still very rich, but fragile. An environmental subject which will also be studied at the United Nations conference on the oceans which will be held from June 27 to July 1.
More than eight months of creation
To perfect this new medium, Nausicaá called on the services of scientists and the Saola company. The latter has already worked in this area for the National Museum of Natural History and its famous large gallery of evolution in Paris, where an augmented reality experience of this type was launched a year ago, but this time here on land animals now extinct.
We wanted to offer an experience in the heart of the high seas which remains unknownFlorence Blond, director of exhibitions at Nausicaá
After two months of research and scientific elaboration, six months of work followed to create from scratch this unprecedented experience at Nausicaá, which will have cost more than one million euros. With an impressive visual rendering, the authors of the experience also focused on sound immersion in order to give the feeling of being in the heart of the ocean, alongside these larger-than-life marine creatures.
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“Choosing the large bay of our aquarium was obvious to our team in order to offer an experience in the heart of the high seas which remains unknown. We then take visitors on a journey from the island of Malpelo in the Pacific Ocean to reach the Indian Ocean. We wanted to offer an animation of the animals represented as close as possible to scientific veracity”, underlines Florence Blond, director of the exhibitions of Nausicaá.
The result is a dive that is both impressive and educational, reflecting the fragility of marine fauna.
Grand Large, meeting the giants of the high seas in augmented reality, from June 4 Nausicaá, in Boulogne-sur Mer. By reservation. From the age of 8.
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