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DREAMTiME (DREAMTiME)
04.26.13

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Overview | Description | Applications | Operations | Results | Publications | Imagery

Experiment Overview

This content was provided by Ben Mason, and is maintained in a database by the ISS Program Science Office.

Brief Summary

Supplied high definition television video cameras and obtained high quality video footage of activities on ISS for commercial, historical, training, educational, and public-interest use.

Principal Investigator(s)

  • Ben Mason, Dreamtime Holdings Inc., Moffett Field, CA, United States

    • Co-Investigator(s)/Collaborator(s)

    Information Pending

    Developer(s)

    Dreamtime Holdings Incorporated, Moffett Field, CA, United States
    Marshall Space Flight Center, DTV Working Group, Huntsville, AL, United States

    Sponsoring Space Agency

    National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

    Sponsoring Organization

    Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate (HEOMD)

    Research Benefits

    Information Pending

    ISS Expedition Duration

    August 2001 - December 2001

    Expeditions Assigned

    3

    Previous ISS Missions

    Similiar investigations flew on STS-95, STS-93, STS-99 and STS-105. DREAMTiME activities were performed on ISS Increment 3.

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    Experiment Description

    Research Overview

    • The core of DREAMTiME is a High Definition Camera/Recorder. DREAMTiME was used on the ISS to provide these enhanced images and audio for ground-based observers.


    • DREAMTiME helped to move NASA into the new millennium through a multimedia revolution to digitize NASA's archives to share globally via the web for generations to come and create world-class film, documentary and television programming.

    Description

    As part of the DreamTime project, a commercial high-definition television (HDTV) system was flown on ISS. When compared to standard television video, high-definition video appears four times sharper, giving a considerably more detailed image. The audio is also improved with HDTV, which records on 5.1 channels vs. the standard two channels in typical stereo systems, in effect providing surround-sound capability. DreamTime was used on ISS to provide these enhanced images and audio for ground-based observers.

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    Applications

    Space Applications

    This new video recording technologhy can document future long duration exploration missions. HDTV can provide improved imagery for spacecraft surveys while inflight.

    Earth Applications

    Ownership of the imagery collected during flight is divided between NASA and DREAMTiME. As for the success of the mission, all HDTV hardware performed as expected, and the crew collected historical footage that is far beyond the initial imagery expectations. The footage includes imagery of Human Life Sciences, life on ISS, ISS structures, Earth views, and STS docking, and is irreplaceable in its enhancement to the NASA archives.

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    Operations

    Operational Requirements

    The camcorder came with a set of batteries that could be recharged if necessary. Each tape records up to 40 minutes.

    Operational Protocols

    The crew filmed according to a preset schedule, although mission control also requested additional footage. In addition to daily activities, the crew recorded Shuttle dockings and Earth observations.

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    Results/More Information

    In developing the original public-private partnership, NASA had hoped that DreamTime would play a role in developing commercial products based on the historic activities on ISS. Lacking commercial direction fromDreamTime, yet recognizing the historical significance of activities on the station, NASA took the initiative and developed scenarios and created storyboards for the flight crew to record ISS documentary footage of outstanding quality during the mission. The result of this effort returned over 500 minutes of HDTV footage, suitable for commercial purposes, and far exceeding the expected imagery return. The private company that originally sponsored DreamTime was short-lived, and no results were generated. The Bioastronautics Research Program has created the video ?Secrets of Science in Outer Space? using some of the DreamTime footage.

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    Related Websites

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    Imagery

    image Video screenshot of a Safety Overview on ISS using the DREAMTiME camera on ISS Expedition 3. Image courtesy of NASA, Johnson Space Center.
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    Information provided by the investigation team to the ISS Program Scientist's Office.
    If updates are needed to the summary please contact JSC-ISS-Program-Science-Group. For other general questions regarding space station research and technology, please feel free to call our help line at 281-244-6187 or e-mail at JSC-ISS-Research-Helpline.
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