There’s still plenty of work to do on Moonscape. Here’s a list of the main tasks still to be done: if you have the skills required for any of them, please contact me at paolo.attivissimo@gmail.com in English or Italian. Please note that this is all volunteer work; don’t expect to get paid for it, because the funds available for this donor-supported project are very limited. I may be able to pay you a token amount, but certainly you will get your name in the credits.
- Soft-coded subtitles. Currently, Moonscape has hardcoded subtitles; i.e., the subtitles are rendered as images within the video files. To simplify updating and translation into other languages, it would be preferable to offer a separate subtitle file readable by VLC and the like (.srt, for example). I can give you the full XML of the subtitles generated by Final Cut Pro and/or an OpenDocument (OpenOffice) file with the full text of the subtitles. This work can be split among several people, for example by chapters.
- Image stabilization. Some footage is very shaky due to the handheld cameras used to shoot it. A good example is the initial part of Neil’s EVA, shot while Buzz was still in the LM. It really, really needs stabilizing. Another example is the Earthrise footage in the main title sequence: I’ve already stabilized it somewhat, but it’s still jittery. I can send you the non-stabilized master footage.
- DONE: Onboard audio. The recording of the conversation between Buzz and Neil during landing is badly distorted and unsynced by pitch variations and needs to be corrected so that it can be included in Moonscape. I’ll take care of that using [FIX LINK] these resources.
- Flight loop audio. Highlights from the Mission Control audio loop of the Flight Director and his controllers need to be added, synchronized and subtitled and the individual voices need to be identified.
- Narration. The text of the narration that explains what’s going on needs to be written and read by a professional speaker or voice-over actor in each of the languages supported by Moonscape.
- Translations. Titles, captions and subtitles need to be translated into as many languages as possible. Have a look at the [FIX LINK] instructions.
- Digital panoramas. Many photographs taken during the Apollo 11 moonwalk can be stitched together to generate a panoramic view, to be animated and included in Moonscape at the point when the corresponding photos were taken. An example is given [FIX LINK] here.
- Heart rates. Original NASA heart rate data is to be used to display the astronauts’ status during the moonwalk and landing.
- Visual indication of correct LM attitude during descent. The current digital animation of the LM’s attitude changes (pitch, roll and yaw) is slightly inaccurate and needs to be corrected and re-timed.
- Plot of LM altitude during descent. The actual trajectory of the LM and its dramatic altitude changes cannot be appreciated from the onboard footage and need to be shown graphically in some way.
- Map of excursion area. An animated map of the landing site, showing the camera viewpoints and the locations of the astronauts at all times, needs to be generated, synchronized and included to allow viewers to understand more clearly what they’re seeing.
- Companion book. I hope to publish the full transcript with commentary of the events shown in Moonscape, to aid in understanding what is happening and explain the jargon used by the astronauts in their very technical communications.