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Here you will find the latest information and news about Ilumbra and 3D volumetric models. Please check back often for updates or 'Subscribe' to join our mailing list.

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Ilumbra Log: 09.12.24 News
Fibrilium at Luxembourg Space Week
Our newest Fibrilium 3D-exhibit took part in the "Interstell´Art" exhibition that was part of the Luxembourg Space Week 2024, which was held from December 2 to 5 at the European Convention Center Luxembourg (ECCL). The "Interstell´Art" exhibition took place at the Artskoco gallery in Luxembourg. The exhibit was shown at the ECCL on Tuesday and Wednesday, and from Thursday to Friday at the Artskoco gallery, together with several other artists with their takes on the topic of space.

We specially developed an artistic exhibit that would allow a Fibrilium-galaxy be exhibited in a bright environment, instead of being located in a dark room. The artwork is called "The universe within". While the idea of a black hole being a gateway to a parallel universe is physically not correct, art allows us to play with the idea. In this exhibit, we can look inside the "black hole" and see another universe on the inside.

Our virtual models are for on-screen visualization, but the new material exhibits, trademarked "Fibrilium" can be watched from up close and walking around them offers a unique opportunity to engage with the spatial forms and structures of galaxies and nebulae in ways that were previously impossible. In contrast to this special artwork, other Fibrilium models can be set up in darkened exhibition room and viewed freely from any angle. See also our news items from June 7, 2022, and August 8, 2024.

by: W.S.
Ilumbra Log: 08.08.24 News
IPS 2024 in Berlin
The IPS 2024 conference in Berlin was an unexpected success for ilumbra. There was a lot of interest in our virtual volumetric and material Fibrilium models. Many of our customers featured our visualizations in their sponsor presentations. Leading representatives of the astronomical visualization community said in their presentation that interactive volumetric 3D models are a clear trend in the digital fulldome planetarium. We agree, with a smile.

In the "black box" on the right side of our stand you can see our presentation of two small "Fibrilium" models of a spiral galaxy and a starforming region (not seen on the picture). Fibrilium is our new type of material 3D exhibits that allows visitors to experience nebulae and galaxies close-up, similar to a model of a ship or other objects that are exhibited in a museum.

by: W.S.
Ilumbra Log: 10.07.24 News
.ONE in The Planetarian
Our new .ONE Optimized Nesting Environment features in the June 2024 issue of The Planetarian. The title of the publication is "ONE — OPTIMIZED NESTING ENVIRONMENT: A NEW STANDARD FOR HIGH-RESOLUTION VOLUMETRIC 3D-MODELS". In this article we introduce our new filesystem that will help integrating complex volumetric landscapes in digital planetariums more easily. It allows to build and deploy extended cosmic nebulae and galaxies with high resolution regions from a single file. The file includes all the textures and information that is necessary to place the model in the virtual universe. Come visit us at the ilumbra exhibition stand at the IPS-conference in Berlin from July 22-26, 2024 to discuss with us how your planetarium can benefit from .ONE models and other ilumbra products.

by: W.S.
Ilumbra Log: 24.11.23 News
Spark: The Universe in Us
That's the title of the new planetarium show from the Morrison Planetarium at the California Academy of Sciences and our volumetric 3D model of the Cat's Eye Nebula (NGC 6543) is part of it. The model not only uses our nesting technique for high spatial resolution, in addition it is segmented, which allows the different parts of the nebula to be highlighted independently. In the recent June 2023 edition of the IPS journal The Planetarian we discussed the segmentation technique for volumetric models as applied to the case of the Cat's Eye Nebula.

The new show contains many more amazing visualizations, many of them straight from scientific simulations and generated by the Academy's Visualization Studio. Check out the trailer at the CalAcademy Website.

Image: Frame from the trailer that shows our Cat's Eye model from the inside (Credit: Morrison Planetarium, California Academy of Sciences)

by: W.S.
Ilumbra Log: 19.11.23 News
ilumbra produces press release video for Max-Planck-Institute for Radioastronomy
"A Smoking Gun for Supermassive Binaries in Active Galactic Nuclei" is the title of the research paper in The Astrophysical Journal led by Silke Britzen of the Max-Planck-Institute for Radioastronomy (MPIfR) in Bonn, Germany. For the press release on the paper we simulated the relativistic behavior of the precessing jets that move nearly at the speed of light. This strongly brightens the jet that is directed towards Earth and renders invisible the counterjet. At the same time we also reproduced the general shape of radio lightcurve. For more details see the press release of the MPIfR. that also includes a link to our video.

Image: A schematic disk-jet model visualizes a jet wobbling due to a supermassive binary black hole at the center of the blazar OJ 287. Image Copyright: ilumbra - AstroPhysical MediaStudio

by: W.S.
Ilumbra Log: 25.09.23 News
On the cover of The Planetarian
On the cover of "The Planetarian", the journal of the International Planetarium Society: it's our new volumetric 3D model of the Cat's Eye Nebula. That was a pleasant surprise. On page 8 of the current edition (Sept. 2023) is our article "DISASSEMBLE VOLUMETRIC MODELS FOR DIDACTIC PURPOSES? SURE, WHY NOT?" in which we describe our new technique of separating different parts of a nebula or galaxy to help increase the didactic impact during live and recorded presentations in the planetarium. #planetarium #planetarian #astronomy #3D

by: W.S.
Ilumbra Log: 10.06.23 Models
NGC 6543, an eye catching planetary nebula
Finally! The volumetric Cat's Eye Nebula is here. ilumbra presents the new model of the planetary nebula NGC 6543 (the easiest NGC number to remember !). It is the scientifically most accurate model available. Check the preview video on in the products section of this website. For more information on the Cat's Eye model please contact us at contact@ilumbra.com.

Enhance your popular science or research PPT-presentations with our PPT-compatible presentation app in iluvia. It allows you to interact in 3D with the Cat's Eye, or any of our volumetric models, anywhere in your presentations.

by: W.S.
Ilumbra Log: 03.05.23 News
ilumbra at meeting of German Language Planetariums
From April 22 to 25, 2023, the meeting of the Society of German Language Planetariums (GDP) was held in the amazing planetarium in Solingen, Germany. This planetarium was build in a retired gas tank! Sounds strange, but once you see it, it seems totally natural and you'd want all similarly retired gas tanks to be converted into planetariums. On Saturday afternoon, ilumbra participated with a presentation on its new technology advances on volumetric 3D-models for interactive live-shows in planetariums.

We presented not only some of our recent achievements with high spatial resolution nested models, but had a world premier with interactive animated models with nesting. The prospects for this new technology in the planetarium sector are amazing. Furthermore we presented our new physical Fibrilium models of the Large Magellanic Cloud and a generic star forming region, which kept people wondering how they work. (Image Credit: Galileum, Solingen)

by: W. Steffen
Ilumbra Log: 31.03.23 Models
New multi-spectral nested models of the Local Group of galaxies
The Local Group of galaxies is our intergalactic neighborhood. It includes the only galaxies that can be seen with the naked eye. The Andromeda galaxy (Messier 31) and the Triangulum galaxy (Messier 33) are in the northern hemisphere. The two Magellanic clouds are large luminous patches in dark southern skies. These four galaxies are the largest members of the Local Group, which in addition includes many so-called dwarf galaxies.

Multi-Spectral 3D Models:

With the new James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) the general public has become more aware of the trend of astrophysics to rely on multi-spectral observations, especially from infrared light. At ilumbra we have just released a new version of the four most prominent members of the Local Group that is richer in detail than previous models. We took into account the trend in astrophysical research to rely more and more on multi-spectral observations.
To assist planetarium presenters in explaining the benefits of multi-spectral astronomy, we created not just the usual optical model, but also separate models of the hydrogen emission from star-forming regions. In addition, we now have infrared versions based on the observations from the Spitzer infrared space telescope. The infrared model highlights the dust that is so important in the formation of new stars.

Nested Focus Regions:

Ilumbra’s high spatial resolution nesting technology for volumetric 3D models helps planetarium presenters travel into the galaxies, getting closer to regions of special interest. Separate models of these Focus Regions can be embedded in the overall model. This guarantees a crisp image of the local structure while interactively traveling through the galaxy.

Ask us about the new nesting technology for planetariums and whether your digital planetarium system is ready for it.

by: W.S. & N.K.
Ilumbra Log: 07.12.22 News
ilumbra contributes 3D model to research on NGC 3132 in "Nature Astronomy"
Among the first observations from the new James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) that NASA released was the planetary nebula NGC3132, also known as the Southern Ring Nebula. We at ilumbra participated in the interpretation and 3D modeling of the observed data resulting in the lead article in the renowned international research journal Nature Astronomy, published on December 8, 2022. An international team of over 60 astronomers concluded that it is likely that at the center of the nebula there is more than just a single star. To explain the 3D structure, derived by W. Steffen from ilumbra, together with the spectrum of the stars it was concluded that at least two stars are at the center, but more likely three and possibly even four. Their mutual interaction and the interaction with the ejecta of one of them produced the very complex structure of the nebula. The 3D model implies the brief presence of narrow ejections, called jets, that changed direction several times during the initial ejection of the envelope of the dying central star. The imprints of the jets can still be detected as bumps in the inner section of the nebula (see inset of the figure). ilumbra used spectroscopic data from the National Astronomical Observatory of Mexico to complement the JWST-data with essential kinematic information for the 3D modeling In addition to the 3D model of the inner region of the nebula that shows evidence for the presence of jets, ilumbra produced an overall 3D model that reproduces the salient features of the planetary nebula as observed by JWST. This model is now available from our Gallery for visualization in planetariums, science centers and other media. The original peer-reviewed article is available at: Nature Astronomy A movie clip of our 3D reconstruction of the inner shell of NGC 3132 - with protrusions that are thought to have been caused by jets from the central stars - is available here (Full HD resolution) A movie clip of the full 3D model is available here (Full HD resolution)
The 3D model for planetariums, science centers and users of iluvia is, of course, available from our Products page.

by: W. Steffen, N. Koning

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