Evaluating Climate
Visualization: An Information
Visualization Approach
-By Mridul Sen
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Credit:http://www.funnyandjokes.com/they-started-hangingout-after-the-pole-melted.html
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Contents
• Authors
• Introduction
• Background
• Tools
• Climate visualization
• Future directions
• A Year in the Life of Earth's CO2 (Video)
• Conclusion
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Authors
• Jimmy Johansson, Senior Lecturer in Information Visualization, Linköping
University.
• Tina-Simone Schmid Neset, Assistant professor, The Department of Thematic
Studies -Environmental Change , Linköping university.
• Bjorn-Ola Linner´, Professor, Centre for Climate Science and Policy Research
(CSPR)Environmental Change Linköping university, Sweden.
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Introduction
Use of information visualization for climate visualization for better understanding
of visualization tools and techniques and also how the previous methods in
information visualization can be applied to climate visualization.
Collaboration between climate , visualization and human-computer interaction.
In-depth understanding of climate visualization.
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Detailed analysis and communication of climate change issues and
research results.
The three interlinked research areas of climate
visualization.
Credit: http://webstaff.itn.liu.se/~jimjo94/papers/IV10_Johansson.pdf
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Background
Key challenges:
 Complexity of societal and environmental systems.
 Vast amount of heterogeneous data on spatial and temporal scales.
Rapid development of computational power and graphics to boost the
representation of large datasets.
Information visualization approach was made but tools were not enough to give
scientific evaluations details.
 Plaisant’s evaluation categories:




Controlled experiments comparing design elements.
(Qualitative) usability evaluation of a tool.
Controlled experiments comparing several tools.
Case studies of tools in realistic settings.
Most frequently used in literature.
Least used in literature.
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• ICEWeb
• This tool lets researchers exchange and edit climate data through an easy-to-use web
application.
• ICEDome
• This is a software environment for large scale visualization and functions as a framework
for development of new visualization techniques. The focus is on using massive multidimensional and time variate data as well as on integrating mixed media in highly
interactive, immersive, environments.
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CLIMATE VISUALIZATION
• After identification of challenges within climate communication ,
scientists have taken approach based on the selection of data , their
visual representation and the creation of narratives.
• Large datasets and complex modelling.
• Complexity of interlinked areas of studies including chemistry ,
oceanography, biology , physics etc.
• Narratives in climate visualization.
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Ocean currents and temperatures on the NASA Science Visualization
Wall at NASA Goddard Space Center in Greenbelt, Md.
Credit: http://blogs.agu.org/wildwildscience/files/2013/03/IMG_12731.jpg
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The Worldview project
 provide details based on scientifically validated data to communicate
the complexity of climate change and interaction with audience.
 In 2008, Researchers of Linkoping University, the Norrkoping
Visualization Centre and the Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological
Institute started the world view project.
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• In 2009,several presentations of 30 minutes were held in immersive dome
environment.
Credit:
http://webstaff.itn.liu.se/~jimjo94/papers/IV10_Johansson.pdf
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 Previously performed evaluations
Priority given on data, representation, narrative, narrator and presentation
environments.
Conducted with heterogeneous groups.
Questions based on novelty , aesthetics and understanding of the visual
representations.
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• For visual representation, Volume bar chart was used.
Illustrations of climate visualization, using extruded
regions with different colour maps to convey information
on a regional and global scale using example data sets.
Credit: http://webstaff.itn.liu.se/~jimjo94/papers/IV10_Johansson.pdf
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Future Directions
• Depth knowledge on the effectiveness and efficiency of climate
visualization.
• Controlled experiments comparing elements:
•
•
•
•
Evaluation of colour maps.
evaluation of how effective and efficient different graphical primitives.
Assessment of interaction technique.
evaluation of how uncertainties and variations in research data are conveyed
by the visual representations.
• effectiveness and efficiency of advanced illumination models.
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• (Qualitative) usability evaluation of a tool:
• Web-based platforms and their applicability for uploading displaying and sharing various
data sets for a number of research areas.
• Tools for dome presentations, their interactivity and compatibility for different data formats.
• Controlled experiments comparing two or more tools.
• Case studies of tools in realistic settings.
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A Year in the Life of Earth's CO2
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/11/141118-nasavideo-carbon-dioxide-global-warming-climate-environment/
Credit:news.nationalgeographic.com
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CONCLUSION
• Beneficial for the researchers as the interactive tools helps in
communication , analysis , planning and decision making.
• Developing and improving existing tools for efficiency and effects of
visual representations of climate change related issues.
• Visualization for large variety of audiences.
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