SCD story/photo of the week: 29 October 2004
"Python interface to NCL graphics library now available"

PyNGL:
Contouring on arbitrary triangular meshes

One thing Python users will now be able to do through PyNGL is contour directly on arbitrary 2D triangular meshes. "This is a new development in NCL's graphical library, and a couple of our users have said they feel it's the biggest breakthrough in NCL since it was created in the mid 1990s," says SCD software engineer Fred Clare.

"Using a grid of interconnected triangles gives a finer level of detail to the area you're trying to visualize," he notes. "For example, given its fine-scale detail, Chesapeake Bay is not amenable to using a uniform grid. So instead, you use a grid of triangles to reflect the complexity of the area being contoured. As you get more and more detailed, you use smaller and smaller triangles. The algorithms in NCL take the triangles and produce contours.

"This is a hot area of research today, using different grids than the standard ones used in the past. So this functionality appeals to a huge user base."

The visualization at left shows contouring on a triangular mesh over Chesapeake Bay.

Visualization: Courtesy Chesapeake Community Model Program Quoddy model