White Sands contains the largest gypsum dunefield in the world, extending across approximately 275 square miles. Gypsum — the mineral used to make plaster — reflects solar heat, leaving the dunes cool beneath the desert sun. From the air, the landscape resembles dripping plaster: white material flowing, folding, and spreading across the basin.

The dunefield is surrounded by White Sands Missile Range and Holloman Air Force Base, where active weapons and aerospace testing govern the land and the airspace above it — a military territory defined by testing, surveillance, and controlled access.

To photograph the site from the air, Wood was granted a two-day military mission assignment, Foxtrot Echo, authorizing entry into airspace restricted from ground to space.