Artist Plans to Launch a Giant Sculpture Into Orbit

Fans of Trevor Paglen’s artwork won’t be able to find his newest upcoming piece in a museum. But if they’re in the right part of the world, they’ll be able to see it by stepping outside in 2018 and looking up at the night sky. That’s because Orbital Reflector, a 100-foot-tall collaboration with the Nevada Museum of Art, will spend its two-month exhibition period in space, Motherboard reports.

Unlike other satellites circling our planet, Orbital Reflector will serve “no commercial, military, or scientific purpose,” according to the project's Kickstarter. Instead, the massive, self-inflating sculpture will be solely intended to catch the eye of those viewing it from Earth. Made from a brilliant, metallic material, the balloon-like satellite will be shaped like an elongated diamond. At night, it will reflect the sun, making it visible to the naked eye for viewers on Earth.

The ambitious artwork is scheduled to hitch a ride on the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket in April 2018. After being deployed about 350 miles above Earth's surface, it will spend around two months in space before gradually falling back toward the ground and burning up in the atmosphere. Paglen claims this will be the first satellite to enter Earth's orbit for strictly aesthetic purposes.

In the past, manmade art has been sent into space with the hope that it would be seen by future generations or by extraterrestrials. But this time, the Earth's current inhabitants are the intended audience.

Paglen's Kickstarter campaign—which will help fund the sculpture’s construction and its delivery to space—is almost over. Take a peek at what the work will look like in the video below.