Visualization of Geospatial Data
for Transportation Engineering Applications

Researcher:
Keisha Harrison, SR/CS

Mentor:
Dr. Timothy Olsen,
Univ. of Wisconsin-Madison, ARC

Keisha became a member of the remote sensing commercialization NASA-supported Affiliated Research Center (ARC) project team when she arrived and began to work on visualizations developed from digital elevation models (DEMs) downloaded from the US Geological Survey (USGS), Landsat-7 multispectral data from July of 1999 and county aerial orthophotography . These visualizations were created to be used for planning and decision-making by a engineering firm contracted to the DOT. The goal was to select the best site for a new Safety and Weight Enforcement Facility along a section of Interstate-90. The visualization challenge was to present complex geospatial data meaningful to decision-making in a manner that would enhance engineering decisions and enable meaningful participation by the general public during open hearings. As part of an ARC project, the fly through visualizations contributed towards the commercial viability of remote sensing data and technology.