Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

VR Visualisation as an Interdisciplinary Collaborative Data Exploration Tool for Large Eddy Simulations of Biosphere-Atmosphere Interactions

  • Conference paper
Advances in Visual Computing (ISVC 2008)

Part of the book series: Lecture Notes in Computer Science ((LNIP,volume 5358))

Included in the following conference series:

Abstract

Scientific research has become increasingly interdisciplinary, and clear communication is fundamental when bringing together specialists from different areas of knowledge. This work aims at discussing the role of fully immersive virtual reality experience to facilitate interdisciplinary communication by utilising the Duke Immersive Virtual Environment (DiVE), a CAVE-like system, to explore the complex and high-resolution results from the Regional Atmospheric Modelling System-based Forest Large-Eddy Simulation (RAFLES) model coupled with the Ecosystem Demography model (ED2). VR exploration provided an intuitive environment to simultaneously analyse canopy structure and atmospheric turbulence and fluxes, attracting and engaging specialists from various backgrounds during the early stages of the data analysis. The VR environment facilitated exploration of large multivariate data with complex and not fully understood non-linear interactions in an intuitive and interactive way. This proved fundamental to formulate hypotheses about tree-scale atmosphere-canopy-structure interactions and define the most meaningful ways to display the results.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 84.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Preview

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

References

  1. Metzger, N., Zare, R.N.: Science policy - Interdisciplinary research: From belief to reality. Science 283(5402), 642–643 (1999)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. Riva, G.: Applications of virtual environments in medicine. Methods Inf. Med. 42(5), 524–534 (2003)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. Desmeulles, G., et al.: The virtual reality applied to biology understanding: The in virtuo experimentation. Expert Syst. Appl. 30(1), 82–92 (2006)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. Ausburn, L.J., Ausburn, F.B.: Desktop virtual reality: A powerful new technology for teaching and research in industrial teacher education. Journal of Industrial Teacher Education 41(4), 33–58 (2004)

    Google Scholar 

  5. Smith, S.S., et al.: Experiences in using virtual reality in design and graphics classrooms. Int. J. Eng. Educ. 23(6), 1192–1198 (2007)

    Google Scholar 

  6. Bohrer, G.: Large eddy simulations of forest canopies for determination of biological dispersal by wind. In: Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, p. 150, Duke University, Durham, NC (2007)

    Google Scholar 

  7. Bohrer, G., et al.: Effects of canopy heterogeneity, seed abscission, and inertia on wind-driven dispersal kernels of tree seeds. J. Ecol. 96, 569–580 (2008)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Dupont, S., Brunet, Y.: Simulation of turbulent flow in an urban forested park damaged by a windstorm. Bound. Layer. Meteor. 120(1), 133–161 (2006)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Dupont, S., Brunet, Y.: Edge flow and canopy structure: A large-eddy simulation study. Bound Layer Meteor. 126(1), 51–71 (2008)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Yue, W., et al.: Large-eddy simulations of plant canopy flows using plant-scale representation. Bound Layer Meteor. 124(2), 183–203 (2007)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. Yue, W.S., et al.: A comparative quadrant analysis of turbulence in a plant canopy. Water Resour. Res. 43(5) (2007)

    Google Scholar 

  12. Yue, W., et al.: Turbulent kinetic energy budgets in a model canopy: comparisons between LES and wind-tunnel experiments. Environ. Fluid Mech. 8, 73–95 (2008)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. Cruz-Neira, C., et al.: The CAVE - audio-visual experience automatic virtual environment. Commun. ACM 35(6), 64–72 (1992)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Visage Imaging. AMIRA (2008) (cited July 7, 2008), http://www.amiravis.com

  15. Bergeron, T.: Synoptic meteorology - an historical review. Pure Appl. Geophys. 119(3), 443–473 (1981)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  16. Hibbard, W.L., Santek, D.A.: The VIS-5D system for easy interactive visualization. In: Proceedings of Visualization 1990. IEEE CS Press, Los Alamitos (1990)

    Google Scholar 

  17. Hibbard, W.L., et al.: Interactive visualization of earth and space science computations. Computer 27(7), 65–72 (1994)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  18. Mathematics and Computer Science Division Argonne National Laboratory. Cave5D Release 2.0 (2007) (cited June 30, 2008), http://www-unix.mcs.anl.gov /~mickelso/CAVE2.0.html

  19. Johnson, S.G., Edwards, J.: Vis5d+ (2001) (cited June 30, 2008), http://vis5d.sourceforge.net/

  20. Desert Research Institute. CAVCaM (2008) (cited July 9, 2008), http://www.cavcam.dri.edu/

  21. Roswintiarti, O., Raman, S.: Three-dimensional simulations of the mean air transport during the 1997 forest fires in Kalimantan, Indonesia using a mesoscale numerical model. Pure Appl. Geophys. 160(1-2), 429–438 (2003)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  22. Magsig, M.A., Snow, J.T.: Long-distance debris transport by tornadic thunderstorms. Part I: The 7 may 1995 supercell thunderstorm. Mon. Weather Rev. 126(6), 1430–1449 (1998)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  23. Bramer, D.J., et al.: Linking interactive concept models into the Visual Geophysical Exploration Environment (VGEE). In: 13th Symposium on Education. American Meteorological Society, Seattle (2004)

    Google Scholar 

  24. Semeraro, D., et al.: Collaboration, analysis, and visualization of the future. In: 20th International conference on interactive information and processing system (IIPS) for meteorology, oceanography, and hydrology. American Meteorological Society, Seattle (2004)

    Google Scholar 

  25. Loth, E., et al.: A virtual reality technique for multi-phase flows. Int. J. Comput. Fluid Dyn. 18(3), 265–275 (2004)

    Article  MATH  Google Scholar 

  26. Nichol, J., Wong, M.S.: Modeling urban environmental quality in a tropical city. Landsc. Urban Plan. 73(1), 49–58 (2005)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  27. Sen, S.I., Day, A.M.: Modelling trees and their interaction with the environment: A survey. Comput. Graph.-UK 29(5), 805–817 (2005)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  28. Pretzsch, H., et al.: Models for forest ecosystem management: A European perspective. Ann. Bot. 101(8), 1065–1087 (2008)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  29. Van Haevre, W., Bekaert, P.: A simple but effective algorithm to model the competition of virtual plants for light and space. J. WSGC 11(3), 464–471 (2003)

    Google Scholar 

  30. Deussen, O., et al.: Interactive visualization of complex plant ecosystems. In: Proceedings of Visualization. IEEE, Los Alamitos (2002)

    Google Scholar 

  31. Seifert, S.: Visualisierung von waldlandschaften. Allgemeine Forstzeitschrift/Der Wald 61, 1170–1171 (2006)

    Google Scholar 

  32. Pielke, R.A., et al.: A Comprehensive meteorological modeling system - RAMS. Meteorol. Atmos. Phys. 49(1-4), 69–91 (1992)

    Article  MathSciNet  Google Scholar 

  33. Deardorff, J.W.: Stratocumulus-capped mixed layers derived from a 3-dimensional model. Bound Layer Meteor. 18(4), 495–527 (1980)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  34. Bhushan, S., Warsi, Z.U.A.: Large eddy simulation of turbulent channel flow using an algebraic model. Int. J. Numer. Methods Fluids 49(5), 489–519 (2005)

    Article  MATH  Google Scholar 

  35. Palace, M., et al.: Amazon forest structure from IKONOS satellite data and the automated characterization of forest canopy properties. Biotropica 40(2), 141–150 (2008)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  36. Bohrer, G., et al.: A Virtual Canopy Generator (V-CaGe) for modeling complex heterogeneous forest canopies at high resolution Tellus 59(3), 566–576 (2007)

    Google Scholar 

  37. Medvigy, D., et al.: Mass conservation and atmospheric dynamics in the regional atmospheric modeling system (RAMS). Environ. Fluid Mech. 5(1-2), 109–134 (2005)

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Geodetic Science, Ohio State University, 470 Hitchcock Hall, 2070 Neil Ave, Columbus, OH, 43210, USA

    Gil Bohrer

  2. Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Harvard University, 20 Oxford St., Cambridge, MA 02138, USA

    Marcos Longo

  3. Visualization Technology Group, Duke University, 130 Hudson Hall, Box 90291, NC, 27708, USA

    David J. Zielinski & Rachael Brady

Authors
  1. Gil Bohrer
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Marcos Longo
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. David J. Zielinski
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Rachael Brady
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Computer Science and Engineering, University of Nevada, Reno, USA

    George Bebis

  2. NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA, USA

    Richard Boyle

  3. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA

    Bahram Parvin

  4. Desert Research Institute, Reno, NV, USA

    Darko Koracin

  5. Digital Image Research Center, Kingston University, London, UK

    Paolo Remagnino

  6. Mitsubishi Electric Research Laboratories, P.O. Box 02139, Cambridge, MA, USA

    Fatih Porikli

  7. Computer and Information Science and Engineering, University of Florida, P.O. Box, FL 32611-6120, Gainsville, USA

    Jörg Peters

  8. IBM T.J. Watson Research Center, 19 Skyline Drive, NY 10532, Hawthorne, USA

    James Klosowski

  9. 128 Memorial Mall, Stewart B001, IN 47907, West Lafayette, USA

    Laura Arns

  10. Denver Museum of Nature and Space, 2001 Colorade Blvd. Denver,, CO 80205, USA

    Yu Ka Chun

  11. Departmen of Computer Science,, NC State University, Campus Box 8206, NC 27695-8206, Raleigh, USA

    Theresa-Marie Rhyne

  12. Los Alamos National Labs, P.O. Box 1663, NM 87545, Los Alamos, USA

    Laura Monroe

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2008 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

About this paper

Cite this paper

Bohrer, G., Longo, M., Zielinski, D.J., Brady, R. (2008). VR Visualisation as an Interdisciplinary Collaborative Data Exploration Tool for Large Eddy Simulations of Biosphere-Atmosphere Interactions. In: Bebis, G., et al. Advances in Visual Computing. ISVC 2008. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 5358. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-89639-5_82

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-89639-5_82

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-540-89638-8

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-540-89639-5

  • eBook Packages: Computer ScienceComputer Science (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation