Geographic Visualisation

Scientific communication can be enhanced by visualisation. Visualisation enables the outcomes of social, economic and environmental analysis to be brought together using visual media to convey meaning to rural and regional planners, managers, communities, stakeholders and policy-makers.

Visualisation allows us to: present the landscape in realistic or near realistic ways bring large data sets to life enable people to become part of an interactive decision-making process present animation, photomontage and augmented reality Visualisation provides a powerful front-end for sophisticated and complex models. Through the use of visual media we can better inform communities, stakeholders, planners and managers of the implications of land use change. Through three-dimensional (3D) geographical visualisation, we can move beyond the use of traditional flat maps and create virtual landscapes where users can collaboratively explore past, present and future scenarios.

Soil and landscape assessment in the upper Bet Bet Creek catchment The upper Bet Bet Creek catchment in north-central Victoria is an erosional upland landscape (formed on Palaeozoic metasediments) typified by a high degree of variability in the nature and distribution of soil/regolith materials, landform evolution and salt stores. Multi-disciplinary work has generated an improved understanding of this landscape by combining studies of landscape evolution, geomorphology, geology, pedology and hydrogeology. This virtual landscape focuses on one section of a sub-catchment in the upper Bet Bet creek catchment and consists of interactive panoramas that contain information about soils, geology, hydrogeology and landscape history of the area.

Virtual DemoDAIRY Virtual DemoDAIRY has been developed as part of a the Victorian Climate Change Adaptation Program (VCCAP) visualisation project aimed at testing the potential of landscape and 3D realistic visualisation to improve the communicability of data, at the regional and local scale, to local and regional stakeholders. The Virtual DemoDairy application focused on communicating some information on the long term effects of climate change, in the south-western region of Victoria and making it accessible to the Demo Dairy managers and stakeholders.

3D Object Library The 3D Object Library is a free resource for downloading objects developed by the Department of Primary Industries (DPI) in collaboration with Department of Sustainability and Environment (DSE) and RMIT University. The 3D objects can be used to create virtual worlds and landscape visualisation products. The files are provided in a number of formats. File formats supported to date include: .GIF, .WRL, .3DS, .MAX, .X3D and .FLT file format. To date there are more than 130 3D objects that can be downloaded and viewed in 3D modelling packages such as Autodesk's 3D Studio Max and Bitmanagement's BS Contact.

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