Nicu P

ASTR1V0X: CONTACT ATTEMPT

[Astra – Latin for “stars”] [Vox – Latin for “voice”] [1,0]

Fulldome visual work by Nicu P. Finalist — Contact Attempt competition, Art Meets Science – Foundation Herbert W. Franke (2024)

Concept

ASTR1V0X is a fulldome audiovisual work exploring the idea of communication across cosmic scales.

The piece reinterprets the original Arecibo Message (1974) by translating its binary sequence into a set of evolving cellular automata rules, forming an “alien operative language.”

These rules generate unstable, flickering patterns that behave like speculative signals — emergent grammars that shift between order and noise.

Inside the dome, these structures surround the audience in 360°, suggesting a dialogue where meaning is both constructed and dissolved by the algorithm.

The work treats the dome not as a cinema screen but as an instrument: a space for non-human intelligence, pattern emergence, and fictional communication.

Screening Documentation

Planetarium — CONTACT ATTEMPT, 2024
Below is a flat-screen documentation (fisheye master → 2D video).

Note: Full immersive effect requires dome projection; this serves as archival documentation only.

Fisheye / Domemaster Version

https://art-meets-science.io/en/contact-attempt-50th-anniversary-arecibo-message

Technical Data

Format4K Fisheye Master — fulldome projection
Engine / Toolsp5.js, GLSL shaders, custom CA engine
Duration~5 minutes
Audio5.1 Original soundtrack (licensed by Foundation Herbert W. Franke)

Exhibition & Recognition

  • Finalist, Contact Attempt competition — Art Meets Science Foundation 2024
  • Hamburg Planetarium — CONTACT ATTEMPT screening, Nov 2024 
  • Bochum Planetarium — CONTACT ATTEMPT screening, 2024 
  • Jena Planetarium — CONTACT ATTEMPT screening, 2024 

Credits

  • Visuals: Nicu Popescu
  • Soundtrack: “Grim Town” by Paul Werner — licensed for planetarium screenings via Art Meets Science — Foundation Herbert W. Franke

See Earth through alien eyes

In a distant future, the Arecibo Message became the seed from which the M13inians, the beings nestled in the shimmering depths of the Hercules constellation, spun countless tales, each illuminating a different understanding of humanity’s existence.