This is a submission for Weekend Challenge: Earth Day Edition (April 22)

What I Built

I built the Deep-Time Mirror, an immersive, AI-powered "temporal lens" that allows users to witness the environmental evolution of any location on Earth.

The goal was to move beyond cold, flat data and create an emotional connection with the land. The Mirror takes you through three distinct epochs:

• The Deep Past (~10,000 BCE): A cinematic look at the primeval ecosystem before modern intervention.
• The Present (The Anthropocene): A gritty, real-time look at current urban and climate impacts, including a "Recent Pulse" with local environmental events from the last 7 days.
• The Restored Future (~2100 CE): A hopeful, Solar-punk vision where humanity has successfully restored biodiversity and integrated technology with nature.

Demo

Experience the Mirror live here:

👉 Deep-Time Mirror Live Demo

Code

The full source code and documentation can be found here:

How I Built It

My technical approach focused on Temporal Synthesis—using AI to ground creative visuals in scientific fact.

Google Gemini 1.5 Flash: I used Gemini to act as a "Temporal Oracle." It performs real-time searches to gather ecological data about the user's location, then generates structured JSON data for the narratives and climate statistics.

3D Cinematic Visuals: I utilized a generative visual pipeline that creates a full-screen, immersive background for every location. This "Art-First" approach ensures that users see the impact of climate change before they read about it.

React 19 & Three.js: The core interface uses React 19 for high-speed state management and Three.js (via React-Three-Fiber) to create the "Temporal Sphere" at the heart of the experience.

Design Philosophy: I used a high-end editorial/luxury aesthetic with Tailwind CSS v4, utilizing Glassmorphism and specialized scanline filters to give the app a "Retro-Futuristic Science" feel.

Prize Categories

Best Use of Google Gemini

Deep-Time Mirror uses Gemini not just for text, but for:

• Grounded Real-Time Search: To find specific local environmental events from 1 day and 1 week ago.
• Complex Reasoning: To extrapolate a "Restored Future" based on current geographical constraints.
• Visual Prompt Engineering: To drive the cinematic backgrounds that change based on the era.

🍃 A Message for Earth Day 2026(April 22)

Earth Day is a reminder that we are not just residents of this planet; we are its custodians.

The Facts We Face:

Carbon Consciousness: CO2 levels are currently at their highest in over 4 million years. Our "Deep Past" view reminds us of the baseline we are trying to return to.

Restoration is Possible: Scientists estimate that restoring just 15% of converted lands in priority areas could avoid 60% of expected extinctions. My "Future" view is a digital blueprint of this possibility.

Every Day Matters: The "Recent Pulse" in the app monitors changes from just 24 hours ago. Climate action isn't a long-term goal; it's a daily rhythm.

Built with 💚 for the planet by: Sushan Shetty (sushanshetty2601-pixel)
Thank you 😇