Using Virtual Environments to Visualize Atmospheric Data: Can It Improve a Meteorologist\u27S Potential to Analyze the Information?

Conventional analysis of atmospheric data includes three-dimensional desktop-computer displays. One disadvantage is that it can reduce the ability to zoom in and see small-scale features while concurrently viewing other faraway features. This research intends to determine if using virtual environments to examine atmospheric data can improve a meteorologist\u27s ability to analyze the given information. In addition to possibly enhancing small-scale analysis, virtual environments technology offers an array of possible improvements. Presented is the theory on developing an experiment to establish the extent to which virtual environments assist meteorologists in analysis. Following is the details of an implementation of such an experiment. Based on the quantitative results obtained, the conclusion is that immersion can significantly increase the accuracy of a meteorologist\u27s analysis of an atmospheric data set