Welcome to SphereCasting with Science On a Sphere ®
This is the place to learn about SphereCasting in detail, find out about upcoming SphereCast events, and review the process to participate in SphereCasting. SphereCasting was unveiled in a prototype version at the 2008 SOS Users Group Meeting in Honolulu, Hawaii at the Bishop Museum. Any comments or suggestions for future SphereCasts are appreciated.
What is SphereCasting?
A SphereCast is an SOS presentation done simultaneously at multiple sites by a single presenter, via the Internet. Many sites can receive the SphereCast, but only one site is the host. There are two components to a SphereCast: remote control of a presentation on an SOS system, and a live video (or audio) lecture that accompanies the SOS presentation.
Remote control of the SOS system means that whatever commands the presenter issues to the SOS system at the host site are immediately replicated on all the SOS systems that are watching the SphereCast. When the presenter loads a new dataset, that data is loaded on all the watching systems. When the presenter uses the remote control to start or stop animation, or orient the sphere, all the remote spheres behave identically.
How Does SphereCasting Work?
The remote control software component is specialized software that runs on the SOS NC computer. SOS software release 3.2.7 or later contains all the necessary software components. This software connects to an XMPP server running at ESRL (NOAA's Earth System Research Laboratory, the home of SOS) in Boulder, Colorado. An external internet connection to the SOS computers is required to run this software.
The streaming video component is the same as other live webcasts you may have viewed. We are currently using Apple Quicktime technology. The Quicktime application for receiving the video is freely available from the Apple web site, for both Windows PCs and Macs. Quicktime is the technology that will be used for SphereCasts originating from ESRL. Since the video streaming part of a SphereCast is independent of the sphere control part, other hosting sites may use a different solution for video streaming, or even an audio-only solution. If so, details will be provided for that particular technology when the SphereCast is scheduled. The rest of this document assumes that the streaming Quicktime server at ESRL will be used for video streaming.
What Hardware and Software Do I Need to Receive a SphereCast?
- SOS system running version 3.2.7 or later
- High speed internet connection
- PC or Mac computer for streaming video
- Apple QuickTime Player
- Large screen near the SOS sphere for showing the presenter
- Audio system connection for hearing the presenter
SOS software release 3.2.7 or later contains all the necessary software components to allow a local SOS system to be remotely controlled during the SphereCast. To check the version of your SOS software, select "About SOS" from the SOS menu of the SOS graphical user interface program (sos_stream_gui). If there is no "About SOS" entry, your SOS software is too old to receive a SphereCast. If that is your situation, please contact SOS support to schedule an upgrade to your SOS system.
A SphereCast is an Internet-intensive event. Therefore, a reasonably high-speed Internet connection is required. A dedicated incoming bandwidth of at least 1.5 MBits/sec will provide a quality experience for your audience. Both the SOS system and the streaming video computer (next item) require access to the Internet.
For the streaming video component, a dedicated Windows PC or Mac computer is required, with its own high-speed internet connection. In terms of hardware connections, this system is independent of the SOS system. One can actually watch a SphereCast video stream without having a colocated SOS system, but of course, then it's just a webcast lecture rather than a SphereCast!
The Apple QuickTime Player is the easiest way to receive the video streaming component of the SphereCast. It is available at no charge for Windows and Mac from the Apple web site (http://www.apple.com/quicktime).
The computer receiving the stream should have a large monitor close to the sphere, and also be connected to a house audio system so the audience can clearly see and hear the remote presenter while also watching the sphere.
What Hardware and Software Do I Need to Host a SphereCast?
Hosting a SphereCast for other sites requires some additional hardware and software components, in addition to those needed to receive a SphereCast. While there are other streaming video solutions, our current SphereCast video servers are using Apple's streaming QuickTime technology. The easiest way to take advantage of this infrastructure is is to use a Mac computer running QuickTime Broadcaster to feed your SphereCast video via our servers.
A video camera is required for the video streaming part of the SphereCast, of course. To use QuickTime Broadcaster, the camera needs to have a FireWire connection to the Mac that compresses and encodes the video for streaming. A tripod and lighting kit is highly recommended for a quality video production. A dedicated microphone for your presenter is also critical for the presenter to be easily understood by the remote sites.
The Internet bandwidth requirements for hosting a SphereCast are more demanding than for receiving one. Many high-speed internet connections are asymetrical, with higher bandwidths downstream (incoming) than upstream (outgoing). For hosting a SphereCast, adequate upstream bandwidth of at least 1.5 MBits/sec is required.
When is the Next SphereCast?
The SphereCast schedule is at the "Events" link at the top of the page, or here.
How Do I Prepare for a SphereCast?
Instructions are at the "Set-Up" link at the top of the page, or here.
(This page last updated on 3/5/09.)