2020.
Inviting Yellowstone Nat’l Park visitors to feel and hear the heartbeat of its caldera.
This project maps a visitor experience of interacting with a sound instrument “playing” the vibrations of the active volcanic network below the park. This is done using data from the geology department at the University of Utah. Please download and view the press kit for a deeper look at the experience design.
Winner of two Core77 Design Awards:
2020 Built Environment Runner Up
Community Choice Prize
By abstracting land information into a sonic landscape, seismic sound instruments serve as a catalyst for contemplation. They transform natural phenomena into auditory experiences, inviting visitors to engage with the mysteries of the wild. This innovative approach not only enhances appreciation for the environment but also fosters a deeper understanding of our interconnectedness with nature. As the sounds shift and evolve, participants are prompted to reflect on their presence within this intricate tapestry of life, experiencing the landscape in a profoundly different way. The integration of sound into our exploration of the wild opens new avenues for awareness, encouraging an immersive journey that resonates beyond mere observation.
Eco-theology and Yellowstone Caldera
Change works slowly but constantly in geology. When we look at a striated canyon wall in the desert, we can see the multicolored strata clearly defined. Each layer of minerals and sediment is a period of time compressed and reformed throughout epochs.
In Yellowstone National Park, the geologic history of the land is less visible, but no less present. Lava flow underground shapes and reshapes the plates above. Seismometers constantly stream out recordings of vibrations in the ground in the form of waves that narrow with stillness and bulge with activity. The vibrations are too slow to hear or feel, but they still shake our bodies imperceptibly
John O’Donohue, an Irish philosopher, believes that beauty in a landscape is much more than the physical forms of the land. It is the elemental rhythm of the place. What if park visitors could come into rhythm with the elemental in Yellowstone?
Eco-theologists argue that human spiritual worldviews affect how we interact with and learn about nature. For the last century, mentions of “the sublime” and “religion” in literature about Yellowstone have been declining. By sonifying seismic data of specific locations in Yellowstone, the Inframent creates a sonic landscape that invites visitors to feel the sublime of Yellowstone. Just as geology changes our perception of time by compressing eons of earth history into one canyon wall, sound has the potential to reform time.
Within writings about Yellowstone in the past century, the frequency of the words “religion,” “sublime,” and “contemplation,” have fallen under 30%, while “beauty” remains above 90 percent. (Meyer, 1994)
Only 2% of Yellowstone visitors leave roads or boardwalks, the most heavily trafficked areas of the park. In an effort to ensure visitor safety and the health of the ecosystem, the infrastructure of roads and boardwalks perpetuate a false dichotomy between “human” and “nature”.
Social systems exist within ecosystems and are dependent on them (Ostrom, 2009). Visitors to Yellowstone are nested within the ecosystem. However, the problem of accommodating large amounts of visitors has created a park in which visitors feel separate from the ecosystem. Spiritual experiences can help to restore the connection between visitors andthe ecosystem.
National parks are pilgrimage sites that embody the collective myths of American culture. (Ross-Bryant, 2005). Rituals take place at pilgrimage sites and are informed by myths and tradition.
The current Yellowstone rituals reinforce old myths about the park like individualism and the untouched frontier. The Inframent adds a new ritual to the park pilgrimage experience and changes myths about Yellowstone.
The Inframent is a platform of sound experiences that take place throughout Yellowstone. The 32 seismometers in the park each produce a unique sound based on nearby seismic activity.
Each of the seismometers in YNP monitor a specific area around the most active center, the caldera (University of Utah, 1983). Transmitted by radio waves, the geological network creates a orchestra of seismic activity.
Each of the seismometers in YNP monitor a specific area around the most active center, the caldera (University of Utah, 1983). Transmitted by radio waves, the geological network creates a orchestra of seismic activity.
Map of Yellowstone Seismometers monitored by the University of Utah’s Geology Department.
Visitation
We collected visitation research utilize many peer-reviewed journal articles describing who visit the park, how long they are there, and what they are doing. We used this data to form design deliverables including:
Demographic Profiles
User Journey Mapping
Site Analysis
Interaction Models
Visitation Journey Map
Demographic Profiles
Site Analysis: Mammoth Hot Springs Mammoth Hot Springs is a popular site near Yellowstone’s north entrance. The Inframent would be placed on the Sepulcher Trail near a parking area. The Mammoth installation acts as a gateway from boardwalks and cars to a deeper understanding of the dynamics of Yellowstone’s caldera.
Site Analysis: Parker Peak Hoodoo Basin, near Parker Peak, is located on a backcountry trail 17 miles away from the nearest road. The Inframent would be placed next to the trail just before the edge of the basin. At Parker Peak, the Inframent deepens backcountry hikers’ reflection about the land they are immersed in.
The Solution
The Inframent sonifies data collected from the seismometer network in Yellowstone. 24 hours of seismic activity are sped up to 22 minutes of audio at an audible frequency.
Data Sourcing
Seismic activity is remotely accessed within 30 minutes of the seismometer recordings. “.Seed” is the standard file type for captured movement. Seed data for the Inframent was accessed through the University of Utah seismometer network courtesy of Jamie Farrell and IRIS.gov.
Scripting
Using a Mat-Lab script, courtesy of University of Utah geologist Jeff Moore, geographic seed data is translated into text files including the time-code (1:65 ratio), geophone x-height and y-height. Infrasonic sound is stepped up to higher Hz that is audible by the human ear.
Mammoth Hot Springs Site
The Inframent vibrates a steel shell with the waves of seismic motion, creating sound that is broadcast to Yellowstone visitors.
Sound Reverberation
Seismic activity is remotely accessed within 30 minutes of the seismometer recordings. “.Seed” is the standard file type for captured movement. Seed data for the Inframent was accessed through the University of Utah seismometer network courtesy of Jamie Farrell and IRIS.gov.
Sound Decay
Using a Mat-Lab script, courtesy of University of Utah geologist Jeff Moore, geographic seed data is translated into text files including the time-code (1:65 ratio), geophone x-height and y-height. Infrasonic sound is amplified to higher Hz that is audible by the human ear.
Touch
The physical vibrations of the instrument encourage visitors to touch the surface and feel the motion of the ground. Bone-transducing touch-points close to the ears, like elbows, are ideal to hear and feel the vibrations as they move through the human body.
Prostration
Visitors can kneel next to the instrument with elbows placed on the surface or lie on the surface to feel the sound, moving from an upright position to one similar to religious prostration.
Final proof of concept