Visualizing website carbon footprints using steam and robotics [video]
We built a robotic plotter that creates ephemeral visualizations of website carbon footprints using water vapor on glass. It analyzes website energy data and translates it into misty patterns, making the invisible impact of digital infrastructure visible. Built during a residency at a cultural venue in Belgium. Code and build details here : https://gitlab.constantvzw.org/gijs/carbon-aware/-/tree/main....
Visualizing website carbon footprints using steam and robotics [video] launched on December 2, 2024 with 37 votes, #557 of 5,365 launches that month and more than 90% of that year's launches. The site was still online in September 2026, 1 year on.
In plain words
This project combines robotics and data visualization to display website carbon footprints through ephemeral steam patterns on glass. A robotic plotter analyzes energy consumption data from websites and translates it into misty visual patterns, making the environmental impact of digital infrastructure tangible and visible. The system was created during a cultural residency in Belgium, with code and build documentation publicly available for others to reference or recreate.
written from the facts on this page · September 2026
From the sources
A small explanation of the Carbon Technostructure directed by Emilie Sornasse in the framework of Future Generation @mad.brussels, curated by Adeline Faveau The cloud plotter, developped in collaboration with Gijs de Heij, is part of Carbon Technostructures, a project that visualises the digital carbon footprint of cultural venues. It works by plotting on steam the carbon impact of the venues’ web
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