Visualizing complex hydrodynamic features

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Abstract
The Lake Erie Forecasting System is a cooperative project by university, private and governmental institutions to provide continuous forecasting of three-dimensional structure within the lake. The forecasts will include water velocity and temperature distributions throughout the body of water, as well as water level and wind-wave distributions at the lake's surface. Many hydrodynamic features can be extracted from this data, including coastal jets, large-scale thermocline motion and zones of upwelling and downwelling. A visualization system is being developed that will aid in understanding these features and their interactions. Because of the wide variety of features, they cannot all be adequately represented by a single rendering technique. Particle tracing, surface rendering, and volumetric techniques are all necessary. This visualization effortis aimed towards creating a system that will provide meaningful forecasts for those using the lake for recreational and commercial purposes. For example, the fishing industry needs to know about large-scale thermocline motion in order to find the best fishing areas and power plants need to know water intAke temperatures. The visualization system must convey this information in a manner that is easily understood by these users. Scientists must also be able to use this system to verify their hydrodynamic simulation. The focus of the system, therefore, is to provide the information to serve these diverse interests, without overwhelming any single user with unnecessary data.

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