Design Strategies for Visualizing Multiple Spatiotemporal Datasets

Asia’s competitive entrance into the ‘Space Race’ is resulting in increased technologies beinglaunched (Guardian 2014; Blume 2007). Closer to earth, we now have a proliferation ofdrones, budget airlines, helicopters, weather collection sensors and more. The scale, number,tiered altitudes and variant speeds of aerial hardware are a physical reality that can only beunderstood through visualizations that have become increasingly important as tools ofprediction (Craglia et al. 2012). However, our skies are represented with disparatespatiotemporal animations; no working visual model exists to reveal all the moving hardwarewhen stratified. Because of this, our culture lacks an understanding of the larger system that isexpanding with Asia’s entrance.Cartography has stretched to consider 4D data visualization semiotics from many perspectivesincluding perceptual psychology (Kraak 2014), effective design and color strategy (Bertin1981), interactivity (Rosling 2009), and realism vs. abstraction (MacEachren 2001). Theemerging field of Information Arts has created a tug-of-war between statistical clarity andevocation and its impact is the subject of extensive research (Garlandini et al. 2009). Howeverdespite Asia’s dramatic jump into the game, existing cartographic design does not yet includestrategies from Asian traditions of representation (Kwan et al. 2014).Individual aeronautic and aerospace software only visualize the assets within their industry,treating altitude layers as lanes of traffic. The invisible borders between altitudes aredisappearing and 2009 marked the first space disaster caused by sheer numbers as twocommunications satellites collided, scattering deadly debris across low earth orbit. Weapons todestroy surveillance satellites were deployed by China in 2007 and 2010, adding to the trashand collisions. Current spatiotemporal tracking visualizations failed to predict either disaster.An improved visual model of aerial strata movement is crucial for safety, public understanding,global policy, environmental discussion, artistic resource, and political and economic clarity.The project aims to explore visual strategies for better cognitive and perceptual understandingof multi-tiered, spatiotemporal data. Can stratified aerial traffic be represented through a hybridof informative data visualization and evocative information arts? What are semiotic strategiesand taxonomic delineations that can merge into a visual language understandable across thegrowing number of cultures now involved in aerial movement and its dangers? Creative designtools will provide insight into finding meaning in dynamic data and may lead to advances inunderstanding other sets of Big Data.Arts-inflected methodology is offering new signification approaches in scientific visualization.NASA’s recent ocean current animation was created by their ‘van Gogh’ team, designers whoused brushstroke techniques from art history (MIT Video, 2012). The project will examineexisting scientific visualizations to find the semiotic successes. Selected movement datasetswill be computationally mapped and animations will be developed using speculativeapproaches to visualize larger relationships through variations in object background, design,speed, behavior, perspective and more. The results will be tested through questionnaires withinsmall groups of public and scientific communities. The published results and online videoswill significantly assist in revealing the direction that provides the most effective visualapproach to understanding complex dynamic systems and will be presented at internationalconferences such as SIGGRAPH and ISEA as well as in indicative journals like Leonardo andthe Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism