Dive into Science! The augmented reality sandbox based at the CLLMM Research Centre in Goolwa is an educational tool that is used to display information in a new unique way. But what is augmented reality? Augmented reality changes your surroundings by adding digital elements to your live view, so when you push and pull the sand in the sandbox it responds and changes your reality, and you see changes in the contour. The contouring scenario on the sandbox is actually the baseplate for most augmented reality sandbox setups and will be developed to suit and be specific to the CLLMM Research Centre’s research program.
The next steps of the sandbox will include an interactive map feature showing water flow and water quality parameters across the region and beyond. The team will use live data to show water flow through the Murray-Darling Basin traveling into South Australia’s Murray River and then into the CLLMM region. Users will be able to scan over markers on a map to open specific data collected at that point. As the project develops, we will have opportunities to have input in future sandbox scenarios, so keep an eye out for more coming soon!