Google is starting AR tours in museums

In one of the first real world uses of augmented reality, Google's platform Tango will be partnering with museums around the world.

The Detroit Institute of Arts will be the first museum to partner with Google. They are offering visitors Tango-enabled devices that can be used to explore exhibits in augmented reality.

Visitors to the DIA will be able to request a Lenovo Phab 2 Pro, which is a Tango-enabled smartphone, from the front desk and use it to explore the museum and various artifacts.

They will be able to use the handset to peer inside sarcophagi to reveal mummified bodies, visualize lost architecture like the six-storey Babylonian Ishtar Gate, and restore ancient limestone reliefs to their original, bright coloring.

Tango offers a more immersive take on the AR-through-a-phone-screen experience which many people became familiar with last year thanks to apps like Pokémon Go.

It is unknown what other museums and institutions will be next to use such a device but Google plans to travel around the world with augmented reality tours and exhibits.