Using Generative Art to Convey Past and Future Climate Transitions

Summary

Here, a protocol is presented to visualize climate data as generative art.

Abstract

The ability to understand modern day climate relies on a foundational understanding of past climate variability and the ways in which the planet is stabilized by interconnected feedbacks. This article presents a unique method for translating records of past climate transitions preserved in deep-sea sediments to broad audiences through an immersive visualization. This visualization is a multimedia installation that incorporates geochemical records of glacial and interglacial transitions and model predictions for future anthropogenic warming to create an immersive experience for viewers, inviting them to engage with and reflect on the subtle, nuanced differences between subsets of Earth's history. This work showcases five intervals of time, beginning with the inception of modern glacial-interglacial cyclicity (~one million years ago), comparing past climate with model results for projected future anthropogenic warming (until 2099). The installation consists of several experimental projections, one for each subset of time, displayed on different surfaces in a room. As viewers move through the space, the projections slowly cycle through different climatic transitions, using animation methods like speed, color, layering, and repetition, all generated through site-specific data to convey the planet's unique behavior as it relates to global climate. This work provides a framework for unique scientific data visualization, with generative animations created using a Perlin Noise algorithm at the center of the installation. Research variables, like sea surface temperature, nutrient dynamics, and the rate of climate change, impact formal outcomes like color, scale, and animation speed, which are all easy to manipulate and connect to specific data. This approach also allows the possibility of publishing data online and provides a mechanism for scaling visual parameters to a wide variety of quantitative and qualitative data.

Introduction

Generative art and the methods employed here allow for the direct translation of quantitative data into animations while preserving the integrity of the data. Artists use generative art to explore perceptions of space and time^1,2, but generative art is not yet commonly used with spatial or temporal scientific data. The work presented here provides a simple framework for using generative visual products to showcase climate data. These products can be widely applied, whether used to create in-person exhibits or as a visual aid for a presentation or online publication.

Using geochemica....

Protocol

1. Playing the existing visualizations

1. Download coding and visualization software (see Table of Materials).
   1. Download the data and code. This article uses 'degrees of uncertainty' with data from Marcks et al.⁴ and Cartagena-Sierra et al.⁵ on the age model from Starr et al.⁹.
      NOTE: The 'degrees of uncertainty' contains five coding files, Supplementary Coding File 1, Supplementary Coding File 2, Supplementary Coding File 3, Supplementary Coding File 4, and Supplementary Coding File 5, w....

Results

This work produces six visualizations corresponding to five unique intervals of geologic time, with visual aspects scaled to quantitative data either measured on deep-sea sediment (Figure 1, Figure 2, Figure 3, Figure 4, Video 1, Video 2, Video 3, and Video 4) or modeled from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's (IPCC) RC.......

Discussion

This work highlights the utility of generative art for the purpose of science communication. The workflow can be used to translate existing data to elements within an animation. While the animation outputs from this work are unique in that each time the code is run a different version of the animation is created, the visual elements are scaled to geochemical and climate model data; thus, elements such as color, speed, and size remain constant, so long as the input data remains the same. This also allows for the direct co.......

Materials

Name	Company	Catalog Number	Comments
Easel	Uline	H-1450SIL	Telescoping easel to hold foam core board
Foam Core Poster Board	Royal Brites	#753064	Foam core board used as a canvas for projection
Live Server	Microsoft; Publisher: Ritwick Dey	Version 5.7.9	Software extension for Visual Studio Code which allows for viewing of animations in a browser window. Downloaded at: https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=ritwickdey.LiveServer
Throw Projector	Optoma	796435814076	Any model throw projector which will work for projection surface/distance desired
Visual Studio Code	Microsoft	Version 1.74 for MAC OS	Software for code editing and execusion. Downloaded at : https://code.visualstudio.com/