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An aerial view shows the USD 1.66 billion MSG Sphere at The Venetian, where
construction work is stopped due to the coronavirus pandemic on May 21, 2020
in Las Vegas, Nevada. ©Ethan Miller/Getty Images

A technological sphere in the most famous amusement park equipped with a sensor capable of recording 16x16k images, with
disguised as a city, and one of the world’s biggest rock bands to light a storage space of 32 Terabytes. In short, a spectacle never seen
it up. It can only happen in Las Vegas, where the skyline shimmer- before.
ing in the desert has welcomed its latest wonder: the MSG Sphere. With 18,600 seats, the auditorium offers a unique sensory
A gigantic structure in the heart of the Sin City was presented as a experience thanks to 10,000 seats equipped with haptic technolo-
hi–tech masterpiece for an unprecedented immersive experience, gy. Through this system, viewers are also involved with vibrations
thanks to its impressive size and cutting–edge technology. and movements synchronised to what they are watching on the
The Sphere was also the centrepiece of the F1 Grand Prix, screen. A perfect harmony between audio and visual technology
the first course among the Strip’s grand hotels, on 19 November that elevates the concept of entertainment to levels never thought
last, and which had this new attraction as a bright reference point. of before. Then there is the audio: 164,000 individually amplified
Opened in late September with the first of a long series of U2 con- speakers placed behind the screen that have a total power output
certs, which will continue (for now) until February, it is something of 100 megawatts.
never seen: its structure is 112 meters high and 157 meters in di- The whole can reproduce 360–degree sounds, allowing sound
ameter at its widest point. Fully covered by 1.2 million LED pan- to be directed to specific points in the room. The technology also
els, its total area reaches 54,000 square meters. The outer panels, enables the transmission of audio in different languages based on
supported by a massive 3,000–ton steel supporting structure, offer the viewers’ location, an innovation that realises the concept of lo-
an outstanding resolution of 14,000x9,000 pixels, creating a uni- calisation.
form image as if it were a single screen. The Sphere represents the latest frontier in building innova-
There is even more inside, and U2 itself showed viewers a new tion, although it still poses some problems to be solved regarding
way of conceiving a show in which music and images become one. energy consumption: the exterior ‘eats’ about 1.5 megawatts of
The auditorium features the world’s largest LED screen, with an electricity, but at full power the structure can reach as much as 2
area of 15,000 square meters and an extraordinary resolution of megawatts, putting a huge strain on the power grid of the gambling
16k, a screen created together with complementary projects such capital of the world. But, after all, Las Vegas residents are used to
as BigSky, the video camera specially designed for The Sphere and such bets. And there is no doubt that they will win it again this time.

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