UX/UI Design
National Air and Space Part I
―Museum
Futures in Space at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum asks who decides who goes to space, why we go, and what we'll do when we get there. I designed the UX and UI for the gallery's digital interactives, from object-based touchscreens and games to a large-format presentation display, creating a cohesive visual system across the gallery.
CLIENT: NATIONAL AIR AND SPACE MUSEUM, WASHINGTON DC ROLES: UX, UI DESIGN YEAR: 2026 TYPE OF MEDIA: INTERACTIVE MEDIA
INTERACTIVE TOUCH SCREEN
Artifact Array
Set beside a display case filled with toys, posters, model kits and souvenirs, Artifact Array asks a simple question: why go to space? Visitors choose from reasons like boosting national pride, answering scientific questions, or going on a vacation or adventure. They then explore the objects in the case that tell each story. A Digital Artifact Explorer lets them browse the full collection by category and zoom in on every object.
The attract loop orbits objects from the case around Earth, inviting visitors to touch the screen to begin.
Visitors swipe through a carousel of reasons people go to space and pick one to explore.
Each reason opens a short story, with its related objects lined up along an orbit at the top of the screen.
Visitors step through the objects in each story, with related photos and videos to explore further.
Any image can be opened full screen and zoomed in for a closer look.
The Digital Artifact Explorer lets visitors browse every object in the case by category, from rocket model kits to license plates.
Each object has its own detail page with multiple views, a description and a credit line.
INTERACTIVE TOUCH SCREEN
What's in a Name?
Not everyone who goes to space is called an astronaut. In this quiz, visitors read clues about real space travelers and guess their title: cosmonaut, mission specialist, commercial astronaut, space tourist and more. Each answer shows how the opportunities to go to space, and the people who get to go, have changed over more than 60 years.
The attract screen asks what we call the people who go to space.
Visitors are invited to take the Space Traveler Challenge.
Each question gives three first-person clues about a real space traveler, and visitors pick the title from four options.
After each answer, visitors learn what the title means and when it came into use.
At the end, visitors see their score and can explore a timeline of space travelers throughout history.
INTERACTIVE TOUCH SCREEN
Working in Space
Big projects in space mean hard choices. In this decision-making game, visitors pick a project: build a settlement on Mars, mine resources from an asteroid, or create a tourist attraction on the Moon. Then they set their top priority: safety, sustainability or profit. Every choice across three tasks comes with trade-offs, and a score meter tracks how each decision moves them toward or away from their goal.
The attract loop invites visitors to touch the screen to begin.
Visitors choose one of three science projects to take on.
Next, they choose their top priority: safety, sustainability or profit.
A mission briefing confirms their job and priority, and reminds them that every choice has trade-offs.
In the first task, visitors choose which type of asteroid to mine and compare how each option affects their scores.
After each decision, visitors see how their choice changed their safety, sustainability and profit scores.
The second task asks whether to use robotic technology or human labor.
In the final task, visitors decide whether to sell what they mined to a private company or to governments.
In the final task, visitors decide whether to sell what they mined to a private company or to governments.
Presentation Space
A large-format display anchors the gallery with a timed, rotating program of short segments. Happening in Space shares recent milestones. Global Spaceflight maps launch sites around the world. Objects in Action shows spaceflight hardware at work. Space in Pop Culture highlights space in film and TV. Join the Conversation shares results from visitor voting at the nearby Conversation Station. The display is designed to work without sound.
Join the Conversation puts the gallery's big questions on the main screen.
Visitor votes appear as results, so everyone can see how others answered.
Happening in Space highlights recent milestones, like the first mother-daughter duo to fly to space.
Global Spaceflight maps launch sites around the world.
Space in Pop Culture features moments from film and TV, like 2001: A Space Odyssey.
Objects in Action shows spaceflight hardware at work, tied to objects on display in the gallery.
INTERACTIVE TOUCH SCREEN
Conversation Station
At the Conversation Station, visitors listen as three speakers share their views on questions about our future in space, like "Should we keep sending humans into space?" and "Does space belong to anyone?" Visitors then cast their own vote on the touchscreen and see how others answered. Their votes feed the Join the Conversation segment on the Presentation Space display.
The Conversation Station sits across from the Presentation Space display, where visitor votes are shared with the whole gallery.
Three portrait screens and a touchscreen invite visitors to join the conversation.
Three speakers share their opinions on the question, one at a time.
When the speakers finish, visitors choose the answer that matches their view.
Visitors see how others voted before the station returns to its attract loop.
Getting In Touch
If you would like to know more or talk, feel free to DM me on any of my social media profiles.
sebastianyepesdesign@gmail.com