Tectonic action shapes many large-scale features on Earth, on Jupiter's moon Ganymede, and possibly on Uranus' moon, Miranda. The most prominent feature of the artwork "Tectonic Basin" is that of tectonic "duning" formed by standing waves transmitted through the surface beneath a layer of garnet sand. Three views of the artwork are shown here (upper left, center, and lower right) along with Ganymede (upper right) and Miranda (lower left).

Center: "Tectonic Basin" (photo credit: Conrad Jung)  Upper left and lower right: Close-ups of "Tectonic Basin" (photo credit: Benjamin Burress)   Upper right: Jupiter's moon Ganymede (photo credit: NASA)   Lower left: Uranus' moon Miranda (photo credit: NASA)

How It Works:  A vibrating drumhead covered with a layer of industrial garnet sand creates standing-wave patterns in the sand.  Vibration wave action and interaction create dunes, trains of traveling mounds, and other beautiful forms.  Visitors may sculpt the sand layer with their own hands to erase the patterns and watch them form anew.