Glyph-Based Uncertainty Visualization and Analysis of Time-Varying Vector Fields

TL;DR

This paper introduces a novel 3D glyph-based visualization technique for representing and analyzing uncertainty in time-varying vector fields, demonstrated through hurricane and wildfire case studies.

Contribution

It presents a new glyph design and a comprehensive framework for 3D uncertainty visualization in vector fields, addressing limitations of previous 2D glyph methods.

Findings

Effective visualization of vector uncertainty in 3D.

Enhanced understanding of hurricane and wildfire dynamics.

Framework facilitates exploration and analysis of uncertain vector data.

Abstract

Uncertainty is inherent to most data, including vector field data, yet it is often omitted in visualizations and representations. Effective uncertainty visualization can enhance the understanding and interpretability of vector field data. For instance, in the context of severe weather events such as hurricanes and wildfires, effective uncertainty visualization can provide crucial insights about fire spread or hurricane behavior and aid in resource management and risk mitigation. Glyphs are commonly used for representing vector uncertainty but are often limited to 2D. In this work, we present a glyph-based technique for accurately representing 3D vector uncertainty and a comprehensive framework for visualization, exploration, and analysis using our new glyphs. We employ hurricane and wildfire examples to demonstrate the efficacy of our glyph design and visualization tool in conveying vector field uncertainty.