AstroViz: Leveraging Visualizations for Diverse Audiences

Presentation themes: fulldome, educational advances in planetariums

Clear and powerful visualizations are a critical component of the modern planetarium experience. Today’s astronomy visualizations comprise an ever-expanding collection of disciplines that include traditional fields of image processing, data presentation, and illustration, available to be leveraged in planetariums using fulldome video and interactive planetarium software. Session participants will experience an overview of the current state of astronomy visualization including a conceptual introduction, an overview of best practices in the use of color, and a review of processes for creating data-driven visualizations. Participants will then be invited to engage with panelists in brainstorming community needs to support enhanced use of visualizations in planetariums, and they will have an opportunity to share their experiences leveraging visualizations for diverse audiences. 

This workshop is facilitated in part by NASA’s Universe of Learning with the goal of contributing to an expanding community of practice for those engaged in the many aspects of astronomy visualization, or »AstroViz«.

NASA’s Universe of Learning creates and disseminates resources and experiences that enable youth, families, and lifelong learners to explore fundamental questions in science, experience how science is done, and discover the universe for themselves. NASA’s Universe of Learning materials are based upon work supported by NASA under cooperative agreement award number NNX16AC65A to the Space Telescope Science Institute, working in partnership with Caltech/IPAC, Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian, and NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory. The award is part of NASA’s Science Activation program, which connects NASA science experts, real content, and experiences with community leaders to do science in ways that activate minds and promote deeper understanding of our world and beyond.

Image © Arena Berlin