Giant globe on display at Truro Cathedral

The artwork, Gaia, hopes to provoke a feeling of awe for the planet

A giant airborne globe has gone on display at Truro Cathedral.

The 23ft (7m) wide artwork, created by Luke Jerram, is called Gaia and is suspended in mid-air.

The internally-lit globe aimed to create a sense of the Overview Effect, experienced by astronauts when viewing the Earth from space, its creator said.

He said he hoped the work, on display in Cornwall until Saturday 28 October, would provoke a feeling of awe for the planet.

A surround-sound composition by BAFTA award-winning Composer Dan Jones is also being played alongside the sculpture, hoping to add a further dimension to the viewing experience, project bosses said.

• LISTEN: Luke Jerram on Gaia's appearance at Exeter Cathedral

Mr Jerram said he wanted to inspire visitors to think of ways we can look after "our only home".

He said: "I hope that visitors will get to see what an incredibly beautiful and precious planet we live on."

Cathedral chief operating officer Sean O'Neill said, "As I lay on the floor of the cathedral, surrounded by almost total darkness and looking up at Gaia illuminated and slowly rotating, I was truly mesmerised by it.

"I hope that others find themselves moved by it as colleagues and visitors have been."

There is no charge to enter the cathedral, but visitors are being encouraged to make donations.