How virtual reality could change the way NASA does science

Fedscoop: Doug Morton is an earth scientist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center and he knows what it’s like to go out into the field (generally a rainforest) and gather information. He has all kinds of tools to collect data — LIDAR sensors, cameras and more. But at the end of the day, Morton can only gather so much, and once back at Goddard, he must rely on the observations he collected to continue his science.

“I often think, ‘If only I could go back and do blank,’” Morton said. Simply looking back at photographs has obvious limitations.

But what if there were a way — short of getting back on a flight to the Amazon — that Morton could revisit the site of his study?

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