Open Data Cube (ODC) Visualization: Bridging the Gap between Data, Decisions, and Development Goals

The use of satellite Earth Observation (EO) data to make important local, regional, and national decisions has become increasingly important as society works toward collective benefit through global sustainable development frameworks such as the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. While advancements have been made with respect to core satellite data management and analysis, less progress has been made on providing the broad range of EO stakeholders (including policy makers and citizens) with clear insight into this data and true understanding of the resulting analysis. This paper presents work toward a systematic approach to utilizing visualization inside the Open Data Cube ecosystem. This Open Data Cube Visualization Framework (ODC-Vis) and associated visualization applications can help bridge the gap between EO data, decisions, and development goals by helping viewers understand data and analysis on a more intuitive and engaging level. The ODC Visualization Framework seeks to increase the value of satellite data across the entire EO value-chain. Within the context of the ODC Visualization Framework, this paper also presents several application examples catering to a range of stakeholders. These examples include: (1) ODC-Vis Explorer - an application for interactively exploring the data cube (2) ODC-Vis Story - an application for interactive storytelling, and (3) ODC-Vis VR - a Virtual/Augmented Reality application that supports interactive ODC analysis. As advanced visualization is more broadly used across the ODC community, improved analysis, greater insight, and better advocacy will result.