Awash in Data: Virtual Flooding with Virtual Reality Technology

Navteca, along with the NASA Applied Sciences Disaster Applications Group, within the Earth Science Division of NASA's Science Mission Directorate and the NASA Information Technology Communications Directorate (ITCD) has been researching virtual reality (VR) technology for scientific data visualization for disaster applications. The project team explored the utility of VR to interact with projected flood measurements and developed the ability to ingest new datasets in near-real time, showing the potential for immersive technology to be used as a science tool for risk communication and situational awareness. Through a Navteca custom-developed VR interface displaying 3D city and terrain models and global basemaps, including coastlines, the end user can order and view relevant NASA and NOAA data sets. This research demonstrates an interactive water level tool to show the potential impacts of severe flooding, as well as the capacity to visualize additional related data products which could increase risk understanding and enable collaboration. Simulated inundation is overlaid on land surfaces using realistic water textures (rather than color-coded visualization or simple numerical data) and is an intuitive way for users to visualize flooding threats dynamically. Time series are also effectively communicated by combining Earth observation data and VR immersion -- users from disparate backgrounds can see how an area looked before a flood, what it looked like during the event, and what changes occurred because of the disaster. This type of visualization tool could also be scalable to other types of disasters and extreme weather events, potentially improving the use of geospatial and Earth observation data for disaster applications. An interactive flooding visualization using VR may bring better understanding and communication of Earth data to a variety of end users, from scientists to decision makers, and could enhance decision-making tools for disaster planning, recovery, and resilience.