Scientific visualization of water quality in the Chesapeake Bay

This paper describes our experience in designing and building a tool for visualizing the results of the CE-QUAL-ICM Three-Dimensional Eutrophication Model, as applied to water quality in the Chesapeake Bay. This model outputs a highly multidimensional dataset over very many timesteps - outstripping the capabilities of the visualization tools available to the research team. As part of the Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) Programming Environment and Training (PET) project, a special visualization tool was developed. This paper includes discussions on how the simulation data are handled efficiently, as well as how the issues of usability, flexibility and collaboration are addressed.