Apollo 11 Lands in Second Life

Do you ever wish you could have been present at the first lunar landing? Well, virtual reality specialists Daden have provided you with a flavour of the experience in their new Second Life (SL) simulation.

The Daden Space Sim (SLURL) recreates the site of the Apollo 11 moon landing and the activities of the astronauts. Visitors don a virtual spacesuit then teleport down the the lunar surface where they can watch Eagle Lander arrive then follow in the footsteps of Armstrong and Aldrin. The simulation also includes original photography and video from the mission together with information and maps available in-world through a Heads Up Display (HUD). And, unlike the real astronauts, you can stand on the surface of the moon and wave goodbye as the Lander takes off again.

David Burden, managing director of Daden, says:

This combination of map, original photography and the virtual build creates a very immersive experience. The spacesuit gives you the heavy breathing sounds and bounding moon-walk. To be able to follow Armstrong’s tracks out to the far panorama point (about 50m away), and then look back at the Lunar Module model whilst also seeing the photographs he took from that spot gives you a real feel for the whole experience. Before doing this simulation all those photos and videos felt very disjointed, but now you can get a great sense of how they relate and what the astronauts actually did on the moon