Center of Higher Learning

High Performance Visualization Center

Buoy Data Visualization

Denise Runnels

Supreeya Miller

Sharif Khalid

Goals

• Visual Representation of Buoy Data

• Prototype for NDBC

Topics of Discussion

• NDBC portrayal of data

• Hardware and software tools used

• Our portrayal of data

National Data Buoy Center

• NDBC is part of the National Weather Service (NWS)

• “Develops, operates and maintains a network of buoy and coastal-marine automated network (C-MAN) stations” that NWS uses in preparing forecasts

NDBC Data Collected:

• Air temperature

• Sea surface temperature

• Wave direction, heights and periods

• Wind speed, direction, and gust

• Barometric pressure

• Station visibility

• Date and time

Raw Buoy Data

• So far this data is represented as a collection of numbers and static strip charts.

Visualize Buoy Data

• We can combine computer graphical tools with the buoy data to make a real time moving image that has more innate meaning than the raw data alone.

Hardware Tools

• SGI Onyx2

• Linux workstations

Software Tools

• C and C++

• OpenGL• OpenGL is an open visualization software package

• Compatible with several different machine platforms and is therefore relatively portable

• Text Font library

Raw Buoy Data

These tools combined with this data becomes …

Air and Sea Surface Temperature

Wave Data Representation

Wave Height

Wind Speed & Direction

Gust Speed & Direction

Mouse Clicks

Future Plans

•We are working on several interactive options for the user such as:

•Varying the speed (Human factor engineering)

•Different day and night effects

•Choice of which buoy station the data comes from by clicking on a map