Mars Climate Sounder Visual Interface

The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter has rapidly accumulated more data than any other Mars spacecraft, in part due to the Mars Climate Sounder. The rate at which data is collected and the compounding amount of data archived leads to a dilemma of how to process and understand the information in an easily accessible format. Transposing data to a visual format for easier comprehension is standard practice in the scientific community. However, blending the traditions of analytical design, graphic design, statistics, computer science, and human computer interaction into one approach can improve readability and lead to a more enjoyable experience.

This research was carried out at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, and was sponsored by Space Grant and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.