Students will be able to watch cloud patterns change through the seasons or explore how precipitation patterns vary over decades. Comparing these visualizations with those of human population density and topography, students can explore the impact of physical systems on human society. NOAA and NASA have recently released data sets that should allow us to create visualizations of the Moon, Mars and Venus that will allow students to investigate the geological process on these planets. Through a comparison with Earth Systems, students should gain a better understanding of planetary processes and our world s unique nature. The projection system will also allow students to gain a better understanding of traditional educational materials.
Classes can view aerial photographs in stereo and discuss the images as a group.
Although aerial photographs have been a mainstay of geology courses for decades, previously each student had to view a separate pair of images and classes could not discuss the images as a large group. Traditionally , geological and topographical map reading has been one of the most difficult skills for students to master in GEO 1001 labs. With this new capability, students will be able to view and manipulate a virtual three-dimensional landscape complete with geological units. The ability to visualize complex, time-dependent, spatial relationships in three dimensions is as intrinsic to the study of astronomy as it is to geology. It may be even more difficult for astronomy students to understand spatial relationships because of the immense scales involved and the need to visualize relationships from unfamiliar perspectives.