Spring 2008
Tuesday, March 25, 2008 at 1pmAdvanced Visualizations
Felice Frankel, Harvard University, IIC
Tuesday, April 15, 2008 at 1pm
Sky in Google Earth
Alberto Conti & Carol Christian, STScI
Thursday, May 1, 2008 at 11:30am
The World Wide Telescope Project
Curtis Wong, Microsoft Research
Fall 2007
Tuesday, November 13 at 2pmThe Digital Universe: Cosmic Cartography and Data Visualization
Brian Abbott, Hayden Planetarium & Department of Astrophysics
Digital Universe/Partiview
http://brianabbott.net/cv/
Abstract
The Digital Universe is a 3-D, interactive atlas of the universe created and distributed by the American Museum of Natural History and the Hayden Planetarium. The atlas is freely available on the web and is distributed to our business partners for use in full-dome video planetariums worldwide. The atlas is also utilized in pre-rendered content for Space Shows and Science Bulletins, a video program that brings subscribers the latest developments in astrophysics.
At the heart of the Digital Universe is scientific data visualization, where accuracy, not art, is our top priority. We use a variety of tools to render scientific data including Partiview, an open- source visualization tool, and Uniview, a full-dome package created in collaboration with students from Linkoping University and SCISS, AB in Sweden. Uniview allows for the seamless exploration of scales ranging from the mountains on Earth to the farthest known quasars. Uniview also provides for network collaboration for remote lectures, teaching, and professional development within a global network of users who log into the same database.
During my talk, I will demonstrate the Digital Universe atlas, discuss some of the visualization issues we encounter while building the atlas, then, in workshop-style, focus on how to use Partiview to visualize your own observed and simulated data.
Thursday, October 4 at 1pm
National Virtual Observatory: Its Purpose, State, and Dreams
Dr. Pepi Fabbiano, Harvard CfA
NVO
Abstract
The Virtual Observatory is the astronomers response to the challenge and opportunity presented by the ever increasing volume of digital data from astronomical observatories world-wide and the development of new computer science technologies that can be harnessed for the scientific exploitation of these data. The US National Virtual Observatory (NVO) is a pioneering collaboration that is engaged in developing standards and tools for access to diverse astronomical data archives nation-wide (ground, space, radio-to-gamma frequencies, even theoretical simulations). The NVO is in turn part of a wider similar world-wide collaboration (the International Virtual Observatory Alliance - IVOA). The CfA has been from the beginning part of these collaborations. This talk will describe the VO: purpose, state, and dreams.
Tuesday, September 18 at 1:30pm
Amazing New Tools for Exploring Astronomical Data
Dr. Alyssa Goodman, Harvard CfA
IIC
http://www.cfa.harvard.edu/~agoodman/
Abstract
Recently, an engineer at a well-known technology company told me that astronomical images are easy to compress, "because they're mostly black." As we all know, this could not be farther from the truth. In fact, the multi-wavelength, high spatial resolution, temporally-resolved data sets that astronomers now create and use on a daily basis offer the modern design and computer visualization communities some of the greatest, most interesting, challenges around. In our work at Harvard's new Initiative in Innovative Computing (iic.harvard.edu), we have undertaken several efforts aimed at bringing new computational visualization tools for discovery to scientists, and to the public. In this talk, I will highlight a few tools, some of which are already available for download, that make astronomical data more visually meaningful. The examples will include: 1) the "Astronomical Medicine" project, which has adapted medical-image display and analysis tools for use on 3D astronomical data; 2) the "Scientists' Discovery Room" project, which is bringing highly interactive "off-the-desktop" visualization and interaction to the CfA and to Harvard as a whole, using touch tables, display walls, and new human-computer interfaces; and 3) the "World Wide Telescope" (WWT) Web Application, which is being developed at Microsoft Research and offers a path to a new kind of "seamless" virtual observatory for the future. The WWT project is part of the "Space-Time Machine" (STM) Consortium, which is a joint venture amongst the CfA, the IIC, and Microsoft Research. In October's installment of the "Visualizing Astronomy" series, Dr. Pepi Fabbiano will discuss additional Virtual Observatory projects at the CfA, which are also related to the STM Consortium's efforts.
Spring 2007
MAY 3, 1PMExposing the Universe... Properly
Managing Dynamic Range with the FITS Liberator
Dr. Robert Hunt, Spitzer Science Center
Abstract
Astronomical detectors are significantly more advanced than the typical consumer digital camera variety. In addition to their great sensitivity at visible wavelengths and beyond, they are capable of capturing both the extremely bright and faint features of an object simultaneously. The dynamic range of such images can exceed 10,000 to 1, but with careful processing all of the features can be revealed. The Photoshop FITS Liberator is one tool that bridges the gap between data rendering and photographic artistry in managing dynamic range.
*Talk Available in PDF and PPT
APRIL 3, 1PM
Visualization for Science and Education:
Mosaicing & IDL
Dr. Daniel Wang, UMass Amherst
Abstract
Imaging visualization play a key role in both scientific research and public education. I will share some of my relevant experience in imaging data processing, particularly in developing IDL-based tools for mosaicing and for composing multiwavelenth images. These tools are mission-independent and simple to use. I will show examples based on oue research on the Galactic center and on nearby galaxies. I will also discuss my view of developing more advanced visualization tools.
*Talk Available in PDF
MARCH 22, 1PM
Multiwavelength Compositing
Zolt Levay, STSci
Abstract
The simultaneous operation of NASA's three space-based Great Observatories -- Chandra (x-ray), Hubble (visible), and Spitzer (infrared) -- provides an unparalleled opportunity to study the cosmos across a broad span of the electromagnetic spectrum in unprecedented detail. A byproduct of this high-quality science has been a collection of visually compelling images from all three missions. Even casual followers of science can't help but notice that many of these images improve on anything available from the ground or previous space instruments.
The same tools and techniques used to reconstruct multi-color images using observation sets from a single instrument can be extended to combine data from different observatories. The resulting images integrate a very broad span of the electromagnetic spectrum from the x-ray to the infrared, and beyond, providing an opportunity to simultaneously visualize widely differing astronomical environments and processes. But does this integration make sense practically, conceptually and aesthetically?
The different astronomical disciplines vary in terminology, data formats, resolution, and any number of other factors. We will explore the practical challenges of integrating disparate datasets having complementary but sometimes incompatible qualities. We will also touch on some of the more abstract challenges of interpreting the resulting visualizations for their scientific merit and aesthetic appeal.
*Talk Available in PDF and PPT
FEBRUARY 1, 11AM
Ethics in Imaging
Dr. Travis Rector, NOAO/Univ. Alaska
Abstract
In general, the public doesn't understand how contemporary astronomical images are made. We use telescopes that far outstrip the human eye in sensitivity and wavelength range. And modern image-manipulation software allow us to create high-quality images in a purely digital form that can be colorized, scaled and manipulated much more flexibly than traditional photographic astronomical images. But concerns have been raised that our images mislead the public, particularly regarding color representation. How do we handle issues regarding authenticity, when the fundamental goal of our images is to show what the human eye cannot see? My talk will focus on issues regarding the "ethics" of digital manipulation, and what boundaries exist to maximize the richness and detail in an image while maintaining scientific accuracy. I will also discuss the issue of our responsibilities to the public when presenting these images.
