Implementing Oceanographic Analyses Using ArcGIS Engine and Java

Geographic information systems provide a high level of functionality for spatial analyses but are not yet able to provide extended functionality needed to create a truly "scientific GIS". Functionality that is lacking include time series analyses, calculation of the volume of the overlap between two volumes or calculation of the intersection of a vector path with a volume. Other functions include the ability to specify a slice through a three dimensional lattice of model output data and to make various analyses along that slice. In this project, we use Java to integrate GIS functionality with Java3D (and Java-wrapped OpenGL) visualization capabilities. Specifically we are using a combination of Java/Java3D and ArcGIS Engine to create a scientific GIS. We combine the tools in the ArcGIS Engine/Java API with the capabilities of algorithms written in Java with the visualization capabilities of Java3D.