JigSpace is an app built to answer that age-old question kids ask parents and teachers (the one we often end up asking ourselves): How does that work?

JigSpace has the answers. And it offers them in augmented reality (AR) to let you learn through experience.

Think of JigSpace as a sort of AR encyclopedia filled with dozens of real-world things that can be explained and explored. Each AR model in the app is referred to as a Jig.

A Jig of Earth lets you see what the planet is made up of: the crust, upper and lower mantles, outer and inner cores. There are Jigs for mechanical things, like toasters, faucets, door locks, clocks, and even satellites that have been sent to Mars. And there are Jigs for parts of the human anatomy, like the heart, eyeball, and ear.

Jigs are also grouped by topic, such as machines, science, space, history, and how-to. When you identify a Jig you want to see, the app will ask you to find a flat surface so it can place the AR model in relation to your environment. Each Jig is presented with a step-by-step interactive explanation of how the thing you’re looking at works and what it’s made of.

Since each Jig is presented in AR, you can move your iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch closer to the object to get a zoomed-in look. The app’s interactivity not only helps you grasp complex concepts with ease, it also provides plenty of opportunities for families and classrooms to demystify the worlds of science, technology, anatomy, and everyday household objects.