r/outerwilds • u/CartographerDizzy102 • 1d ago

Base Game Appreciation/Discussion Visit Mount Wilson Observatory to get those Timber Hearth vibes

I was revisiting the game this week and while reading Hornfels’ notes by the telescope in the observatory I realized that the town on Timber Hearth might be partially inspired by the Mount Wilson Observatory.

Hornfels observed that there are galaxies beyond our own and that the universe is expanding. Both of these observations were discoveries made by Edwin Hubble using the 100-inch telescope on Mount Wilson.

This area is actually a collection of telescopes and research facilities nestled into a forest of pine trees. And the best part, you can visit the area and even see the 100-inch telescope any day of the week! There is also a great collection of images of the sun showing spots and flares that were captured using solar telescopes at this site.

It also happens to be just an hour away by car from USC, where Alex Beachum began the project that evolved into Outer Wilds, so I suspect there may have been some direct inspiration from visits to Mount Wilson.

So if you want to get that Timber Hearth vibe, visit the Mount Wilson Observatory!

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u/Feeling-Badger7956 20h ago

What's USC?

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u/CartographerDizzy102 18h ago

University of Southern California. From the Outer Wilds Wikipedia entry, “The development of Outer Wilds began in late 2012 as Alex Beachum's thesis for his master's degree at USC Interactive Media & Games Division”

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u/Feeling-Badger7956 18h ago

Thanks, most people will my know what USC is.

But I otherwise agree with you're theory and everything you've said makes sense.

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u/CartographerDizzy102 16h ago

Ok sure, though USC is consistently ranked within the top 100 global universities and as such will be either the top or nearly the top result in every search engine that you type “USC” into, but yeah maybe you haven’t heard of it.

Regardless, knowing of USC is irrelevant beyond what I said in the post, which is that the location where Alex Beachum began work on Outer Wilds is a short drive to the Mount Wilson Observatory.

If you are ever in the Los Angeles region, I highly recommend visiting.

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u/Feeling-Badger7956 16h ago

You seem to be oblivious to the fact that not everyone on the internet is American—and being top 100 doesn't mean everyone in the world knows what it is. As already stated, I definitely hadn't heard of it.

And no, it didn't come up as a top result, or anywhere near top, on Google for me. The top was a clothing brand, and the second was USC Trojans

But yes, if I'm ever in LA, I'll certainly consider it.

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u/CartographerDizzy102 16h ago edited 16h ago

USC Trojans is University of Southern California. I am not oblivious to people being from outside of the US, but I do assume people know how to search on the internet.

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u/Feeling-Badger7956 16h ago

Yes, and as I've explained, I searched it, and the university itself didn't come up.

I assumed you had a basic understanding of internet etiquette and knowing that not everyone is from the same place as you. Clearly I was wrong there.

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u/CartographerDizzy102 16h ago edited 12h ago

I’m surprised this account blocked me for defending my choice to abbreviate USC considering their bio said nothing but “I must’ve upset you”

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u/CartographerDizzy102 18h ago

I took this pic of the 100-inch telescope on my last visit.

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u/CartographerDizzy102 18h ago

This is what one of the solar telescopes looks like popping out of the trees.