Take a Virtual Tour of the Statue of Liberty with a New AR-Enabled App From Apple

From News.com:

Developed by Yap Studios alongside the Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Foundation, the Statue of Liberty app launches Tuesday on Apple devices alongside a podcast series narrated by designer Diane von Furstenberg, who has served as chair of the Statue of Liberty Museum’s fundraising campaign. The app uses ARKit to create its 3D recreations of the statue, which slowly blends from being in the world around you to standing in New York Harbor as you lift the screen.

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A view of the New York skyline from the statue’s perspective changes over the years in an accelerated time-lapse mode. There’s also a section of the app that has historical photos and details.

The AR-enabled app works anywhere, but the location-specific audio tour works when visiting the museum, which I haven’t done yet. Immersive audio links to 15 points of interest around the island, and 20 in the museum, and has separate tours targeted to kids and adults. Apple’s MapKit was used to enable indoor mapping to work with the app’s audio. At the moment, the app doesn’t blend AR and immersive MapKit-specific audio.

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Info about Some of the App’s Features From the iTunes App Store:

Torch Panorama (AR)

Experience a rare view from the Statue of Liberty’s torch, wherever you are. This AR experience offers breathtaking views of Liberty Island and the expansive New York Harbor. Watch the New York City skyline as the sun rises and falls. No one has seen this view since 1916, when public access to the torch was shut down.

Making of Lady Liberty (AR)

Explore the engineering marvel and global symbolism of the Statue of Liberty by placing her right in front of you. Augmented Reality allows you to interact with the most accurate 3D model of the Statue to date. See how the exposure to the elements over time transformed her original copper luster into the iconic green patina we see today. And look inside the Statue to explore Gustave Eiffel’s trussed iron tower.

Life-Size Model (AR)

Study a life-size 3D model of the Statue of Liberty’s left foot using Augmented Reality. Place the model in front of you, pinch and zoom in to scale, and marvel at its size.

Historical Time-lapse (180° Experience)

Watch Manhattan’s skyline evolve over the past 200 years through a time-lapse video set from the view point of Lady Liberty’s crown.