Web-based scientific visualization software for geospatial displays and collaborative applications

Abstract

This paper describes recent efforts to create a fully interactive visualization system that operates within a standard desktop web browser. We present the client-server architecture of the new system, in which a visualization server is able to stream rendered images to a lightweight client operating within a user's web browser. We show that this system is practical in various usage scenarios, including a marine environmental display and collaborative visualization of massive LIDAR point clouds, and that it is an effective means to bring scientific visualization to low-powered desktops computers and tablets.