Interchanging Interactive 3D Graphics for Astronomy

Abstract We demonstrate how interactive, three-dimensional (3D) scientific visualizations can be efficiently interchanged between a variety of mediums. Through the use of an appropriate interchange format, and a unified interaction interface, we minimize the effort to produce visualizations appropriate for undertaking knowledge discovery at the astronomer's desktop, as part of conference presentations, in digital publications or as Web content. We use examples from cosmological visualization to address some of the issues of interchange and to describe our approach to adapting s2plot desktop visualizations to the Web2.

[1]  R W Hockney,et al.  Computer Simulation Using Particles , 1966 .

[2]  Edward Rolf Tufte,et al.  The visual display of quantitative information , 1985 .

[3]  Edward R. Tufte,et al.  The Visual Display of Quantitative Information , 1986 .

[4]  Craig Upson Proceedings of the 1989 Chapel Hill workshop on Volume visualization , 1989 .

[5]  Edward R. Tufte,et al.  Envisioning Information , 1990 .

[6]  John E. Howland,et al.  Computer graphics , 1990, IEEE Potentials.

[7]  P. Fayers,et al.  The Visual Display of Quantitative Information , 1990 .

[8]  Carlos S. Frenk,et al.  Galaxy formation through hierarchical clustering , 1991 .

[9]  G. A. Croes,et al.  FITS++: An Object-Oriented Set of C++ Classes to Support FITS , 1997 .

[10]  A. Globus,et al.  Fourteen Ways to Say Nothing with Scientific Visualization , 1994, Computer.

[11]  Howard A. Bushouse,et al.  Astronomical Data Analysis Software and Systems VII , 1998 .

[12]  C. Baugh,et al.  Hierarchical galaxy formation , 2000, astro-ph/0007281.

[13]  Michael J. Kurtz,et al.  The NASA Astrophysics Data System: Overview , 2000, astro-ph/0002104.

[14]  V. Springel,et al.  GADGET: a code for collisionless and gasdynamical cosmological simulations , 2000, astro-ph/0003162.

[15]  Andre Heck,et al.  Information Handling in Astronomy - Historical Vistas , 2002 .

[16]  H. A. Abt,et al.  Changes in Astronomical Publications During the 20th Century , 2003 .

[17]  Michael Lancaster,et al.  Visualizing astronomy data using VRML , 2004, SPIE Astronomical Telescopes + Instrumentation.

[18]  Masatoshi Ohishi,et al.  The International Virtual Observatory Alliance: recent technical developments and the road ahead , 2004, SPIE Astronomical Telescopes + Instrumentation.

[19]  Alan Bridger,et al.  Optimizing Scientific Return for Astronomy through Information Technologies , 2004 .

[20]  Simon T. Garrington,et al.  Toward an International Virtual Observatory , 2004 .

[21]  Alexander S. Szalay,et al.  VOTable: Tabular Data for the Virtual Observatory , 2004 .

[22]  Volker Springel,et al.  The Many lives of AGN: Cooling flows, black holes and the luminosities and colours of galaxies , 2006, astro-ph/0602065.

[23]  J. Peacock,et al.  Simulations of the formation, evolution and clustering of galaxies and quasars , 2005, Nature.

[24]  V. Springel The Cosmological simulation code GADGET-2 , 2005, astro-ph/0505010.

[25]  Matthew Colless,et al.  Second Data Release of the 6dF Galaxy Survey , 2005, Publications of the Astronomical Society of Australia.

[26]  G. Kauffmann,et al.  The many lives of active galactic nuclei: cooling flows, black holes and the luminosities and colour , 2005, astro-ph/0508046.

[27]  Christopher J. Fluke,et al.  An Advanced, Three-Dimensional Plotting Library for Astronomy , 2006, Publications of the Astronomical Society of Australia.

[28]  New Journal of Physics The , 2007 .

[29]  G. Lucia,et al.  The hierarchical formation of the brightest cluster galaxies , 2006, astro-ph/0606519.

[30]  Christopher J. Fluke,et al.  Incorporating interactive three-dimensional graphics in astronomy research papers , 2007, 0709.2734.

[31]  Christopher J. Fluke,et al.  The Interactive Astronomy Textbook , 2008 .

[32]  Michael Perryman,et al.  Astronomical Applications of Astrometry: The Hipparcos and Tycho Catalogues , 2008 .

[33]  John Dubinski,et al.  Visualizing astrophysical N-body systems , 2008, 0805.4397.

[34]  R. Rosenfeld Nature , 2009, Otolaryngology--head and neck surgery : official journal of American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery.