Geospatial Visualization of Atmospheric Chemistry Satellite Data Using Google Earth

Earth observation satellites employ various types of remote-sensing instruments to peer into the secrets of the atmosphere. Many of these instruments collect two-dimensional data stored as raster images which can be easily geo-referenced and overlaid onto a virtual globe, with stunning results. However, certain instruments collect three-dimensional science data which can pose a significant challenge for visualization efforts. The Tropospheric Emission Spectrometer (TES) is such an instrument which collects scientific data about atmospheric chemistry and stores the outputs in an Oracle database. With some imaginative programming, the data is transformed into interesting and information-packed visualizations using shell scripts, SQL scripts and Oracle stored procedures to yield Google Earth-formatted files. This Google Earth content is hosted on the TES external web site for use by the public.