As we’ve covered – pretty extensively – on VRFocus, virtual reality (VR) can be used in a great many arenas beyond just videogames. Use of VR, and indeed other elements of immersive technology like augmented reality (AR) and mixed reality (MR), can be found in use within the arts. In a creative context for film, television, art and more. Last week saw many announcements in relation to the Sundance Film Festival for instance, where each year VR’s presence encourages new and clever ways to make a point or tell a story. We’ve seen it being used in the field of medicine, in design and architecture and more. We’ve also seen immersive tech be used in the field of academic research – not just education, where it arguably has endless potential.
It was VR, that the scientists who feature in a new documentary airing tonight about the wonders of Egypt, turned to when investigating the mysterious new chambers that were discovered not all that long ago inside the Great Pyramid of Giza – oldest of the seven wonders of the ancient world.
The documentary in question is Scanning The Pyramids, a new production by CuriosityStream that airs tonight at 10:00PM ET, after which it will also be available on demand. In it filmmakers chart the difficult processes and ground-breaking technologies combining VR with new cosmic ray technology to peek beyond the readily visible and reveal secrets that have lay hidden for thousands of years. These voids within the pyramid of Pharaoh Khufu are not readily accessible but thanks to the work that has been done much more is known about the internal structure of the pyramid and where further researchers might begin their work on the heavily protected ancient building.
The team are led by Professor Hany Helal along with a software team from Dassault Systèmes, who we have featured on VRFocus on a number of occasions.
To Steve Burns, CuriosityStream’s Chief Programming Officer, it’s an intriguing insight into equally intriguing work. “The pyramids have fascinated both scientists and treasure-seekers for 4,000 years. Scan Pyramid’s new techniques have allowed us to virtually ‘x-ray’ the massive monument and locate possible unknown chambers that may yet solve the mystery of how the pyramids were built.” He explains. “Ironically, King Tut was just a boy king, but he had amassed great riches that were found inside his tomb in the Valley of the Kings, 300 miles south in Luxor. On the other hand, Khufu was an important and long-serving pharaoh, yet nothing has ever been found inside his tomb, The Great Pyramid. Could these new chambers hold his hidden treasure? The potential is extremely provocative.”
You can find more information about the broadcast on the CuriosityStream website and there is a preview trailer below.