interior

360° Panoramas of Temple Square

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360° panoramas of Temple Square let you look around as if you were there.

360° panoramas of Temple Square let you look around as if you were there.

Dr. William Hamblin has put together some very cool high resolution 360° panoramas of different locations on Temple Square in Salt Lake City.  And they really are 360°.  You can look in all different directions, including up and down.  It gives the impression of standing on the spot.  Well done!

The locations he has included are:

  • West of the Salt Lake Temple (next to Tabernacle)
  • In between Assembly Hall and Tabernacle
  • East of the Salt Lake Temple
  • South of the Salt Lake Temple
  • Near the South Visitor’s Center
  • Christus statue in the North Visitor’s Center
  • Conference Center auditorium
  • Tabernacle interior

You get the best effect if you zoom in just a little.  You can zoom in and out by using the shift and Ctrl keys on your keyboard.  You can move around by clicking and dragging with your mouse.

I’ve always been impressed by how new technologies can take us places for fun or practical purposes.  I’ve written about visiting Utah temples with Google Street View, modeling temples in 3D with Google’s Sketchup, using Microsoft’s Photosynth technology to virtually zoom around Temple Square, or how the Church uses computer rendering to envision future temples.  Dr. Hamblin’s panoramas are a welcome addition!

See the 360° Panoramas of Temple Square

Mexico City Temple Soon to Open After Remodeling

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Mexico City Temple Celestial Room

Mexico City Temple Celestial Room. Photo © 2008 Intellectual Reserve Inc.

The Church’s Newsroom has reported that after 19 months of remodeling the Mexico City Temple will be reopened for public tours, after which it will be rededicated on Sunday, November 16th, 2008.  Guided public tours will be held from October 20th through November 8th.

The temple was originally dedicated on December 2, 1983, and currently serves 264,000 members in Mexico.

There is a short article on the Newsroom’s website with some history of the temple, and some great photos of the exterior and interior of the temple.  Note that after the temple has been dedicated that the photos of the interior are removed.  So take this chance to see the beautiful interiors.

Newport Beach California Temple Interiors Video

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Here is yet another excellent temple video, this time of the interior of the Newport Beach California Temple. It was compiled by a member of the church, mikebatie on YouTube, from official photos published by the Church, taken probably during the time of the open house of the temple before the dedication. The temple in Newport Beach was announced on April 21, 2001. The groundbreaking was on August 15, 2003. After a several week open house to the public, President Hinckley dedicated the temple on August 28, 2005. See the Google Maps Street View of this temple.

An interesting anecdote of the placement of the angel Moroni during construction comes from LDSChurchTemples.com:

On January 13, 2005, a statue of the angel Moroni crowned the temple. During placement, a remarkable solar halo was visible, which surrounded the sun. Once Moroni was in place, the phenomenon dissipated. ((http://www.ldschurchtemples.com/newportbeach/, “Topping the Temple,” Los Angeles Times 14 Jan. 2005: B3.))

The excellent music is entitled “The Power of Heaven,” with words and music by Steven Kapp Perry, arranged by Greg Hansen, and from the 1999 album “As Temples Fill the Earth.” The vocalist is Tammy Simister Robinson. You can buy the album at the BYU Bookstore or at Deseret Book.

To see the other videos I’ve posted on Temple Study, see the video tag.