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Stars Without Steps: Bridging Observatory Access Based on Physical Proximity Through Educational XR

Clara Sayffaerth, Jennifer Meiler, Crystal McArdle-Ventura, Atakan \c Coban, Christoph Hoyer, Florian Müller, Arno Riffeser, Jochen Kuhn, Albrecht Schmidt
CHI EA 2026
Extended Abstracts of the 2026 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems
PDF DOI
TL;DR
What we did: We developed a mobile Extended Reality application that allows users to explore and interact with a mountain observatory virtually, addressing physical accessibility barriers.
What we found: We found that context-dependent physical proximity significantly influences user experience factors such as mental workload, presence, motivation, and perceived access, although quiz performance remained consistent across conditions.
Takeaway: Our results highlight the importance of incorporating proximity-aware design in Extended Reality systems to enhance educational engagement and make inaccessible locations more meaningful for users.

Abstract

Remote research facilities such as mountain observatories offer unique scientific and educational value, yet their physical inaccessibility limits participation for many audiences. This paper presents a location-independent, mobile Extended Reality (XR) application that extends the experiential reach of a mountain-based observatory beyond its geographic constraints. The application allows users to virtually explore a research telescope and interactively learn about the observatory’s scientific work, instrumentation, and operational principles. Following interviews with on-site visitors to identify access barriers and learning needs, we developed an XR experience and evaluated it in an in-the-wild study with three school classes (N = 35). We deployed the application across three contexts (remote location, intermediate plateau, mountain summit) and assessed factors such as mental load, presence, motivation, perceived access, and quiz results. Our findings indicate that context-dependent physical proximity influences all factors except the quiz outcome, highlighting the importance of proximity-aware design for future XR systems.