A ‘Wave’ of New Understanding About Earth’s Oceans and Atmosphere

On one towering screen, monochrome clouds whoosh by as if the viewer is watching them from above. On the next screen, a range of blues and greens on a section of ocean represents the levels of carbon and chlorophyll present. On a third, a rainbow effect on the outer edges of an image of Earth shows how far various wavelengths can penetrate the planet’s surface.

These screens and the scenes they show make up “Wave: From Space to Ocean,” a project led by a team of University of Maryland faculty members and students working with NASA scientists and counterparts from the University of North Texas. Together, they’re turning data from a satellite into an interactive, digestible visual experience for the public. The project is on view at the Kennedy Center through April 13 as part of the “Earth to Space: Arts Breaking the Sky” festival.

The PACE (Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, Ocean Ecosystem) satellite, which launched on Feb. 8, 2024, is collecting critical information about ocean health and air quality by measuring the distribution of phytoplankton—microscopic plants and algae that provide food for lots of aquatic creatures while producing much of the planet’s oxygen—and by monitoring atmospheric variables associated with air quality. 

“The satellite is able to look at our globe in ways that have never been done before,” said Ian McDermott ’12, the immersive media technician for UMD’s Immersive Media Design (IMD) program and one of the leaders of the Wave project. IMD is affiliated with UMD’s Arts for All initiative, which identifies and supports creative ways to combine the university’s strengths in the arts, sciences and technology to advance social justice, build community and develop collaborative, people-centered solutions to grand challenges. Arts for All also helped fund the initial project through a Spring 2024 ArtsAMP Grant. “It’s able to take photos and absorb data that uses colors that are beyond our eyes’ capacity to see. We’re making that data engaging to the general public.”

“Wave” is a roughly 15-minute animation projected on screens 16 feet tall. Motion capture cameras track guests’ bodies and movements; by waving their hands or making other motions, visitors can reveal data about phytoplankton levels, turn the globe to see a different angle of the atmosphere’s wavelengths, or watch what a phytoplankton bloom (a rapid increase in the population of the photosynthetic plankton) looks like. They can track images of clouds, captured by an instrument called HARP2 that uses 60 cameras at one time to take images; the results show their sizes and classifications, gleaning information like where lack of rain clouds might mean drought.

The project allows guests to “become proactive researchers and discover new information, new answers and new questions,” said Myungin Lee, a lecturer in the Department of Computer Science and a leader on “Wave” with Mollye Bendell, assistant professor of art. (Sam Crawford, sound and media technologist in the School of Theatre, Dance, and Performance Studies and co-director of the Maya Brin Institute for New Performance, also worked on “Wave.”)

The installation is an example of how UMD’s faculty members are developing innovative new ways of teaching and learning. “This artwork involves programming, data processing and visualization, user interface design, 3D modeling and scientific simulation,” said Lee. “The students are getting unique opportunities to be involved in such a large-scale project.”

Andrei Davydov ’25, a student in the IMD program, worked on 3D modeling for the project, sharpening his skills in coding. “It was a fun animation challenge to have the planktons both work as a group of 200, while at the same time making them have their own individual personalities,” he said.

The Wave team members hope that those who interact with the installation will walk away with a deepened appreciation for the intricate ecosystems that inhabit our planet’s oceans and atmosphere. “I want them to be mesmerized and taken by awe by the big scale of the exhibition, and also connect with how our oceans are doing,” said Yooeun Lee ’26, an IMD student. “I hope people will appreciate nature and continue to bring more recognition to it.”