Managing a crisis in virtual reality - Tackling a wildfire

Abstract

In this paper we present a virtual reality application, where multiple users can observe and interact with a portion of geo-referenced terrain where a real wildfire took place. The application presents a layout with two maps, one is a three-dimensional view with terrain elevation and the other is a conventional two-dimensional view. The VR users can control different layers (roads, waterways, etc), control the wildfire’s playback, command vehicles to change positions and paint the terrain conveying information to one-another. This work explores how users interact with map visualizations and plan for a crisis management scenario within a virtual environment.