Computer Visualization in Spacecraft Exploration of the Solar System

Abstract

Computer visualization, including graphical, imaging, and animation methods, is an essential tool for spacecraft exploration of the solar system. Its applications range from planning trajectories and orbital tours, and animation of spacecraft encounters, to a variety of applications involving the visual display and scientific analysis of returned data. Scientific visualization can take forms as varied as the suite of instruments carried by the spacecraft, but includes representation of motion and fields, animation of imaging sequences, and the effective communication of scientific results by the use of novel computer-generated graphics, images, and animated sequences. We present a few examples drawn from spacecraft flybys of the outer planets and the ongoing scientific analysis of the wealth of data they have returned.