Liquid Galaxy Supporting the Community During Natural Disaster
By Ben Witten
June 7, 2018
Earthquakes and explosive eruptions are currently rocking Kīlauea’s summit crater, creating concerns for the local community. Fortunately, NOAA’s Mokupāpapa Discovery Center in Hilo is stepping up to educate the greater community with the help of their Liquid Galaxy system, which was created and is supported by End Point.
While there is active volcanic activity and explosive eruptions continue at the Kīlauea summit, Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park is mostly closed to its nearly two million annual visitors. NOAA’s Mokupāpapa Discovery Center in Hilo is helping to support the community affected by the lava flows and eruption at Kīlauea summit and along its Lower East Rift Zone by hosting Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park Service rangers and interpretive staff.
To lessen the impact on park visitors and to provide a venue to learn about the current eruption, NOAA’s Mokupāpapa Discovery Center in Hilo is hosting a pop-up park center, with daily ranger talks at 10 am and 2 pm, on-site rangers throughout the day, and support of park programming. NOAA National Weather Service meteorologists from the Hilo Data Collection Office are also participating in the daily 10 am briefing to provide information on ash fall, wind direction, and air quality hazards.
The briefings are being given using End Point’s Liquid Galaxy as a visualization and briefing tool to show where the current lava flows are and where ash fall may occur from the explosive eruptions at the summit. Understanding where the activity is taking place, as well as understanding what areas are potentially dangerous, has been critical to keeping the public safe from this spectacular natural event. Liquid Galaxy is proving to be an excellent tool to show both the geography and the geology, and previous historic flows on Hawaiʻi Island.
Our End Point support team is monitoring this Liquid Galaxy system 24×7 to ensure there are no disruptions in service for the public’s education. Although the need for our system under these circumstances is unfortunate, we are very thankful that we can lend a hand to support the community through the course of this natural disaster.
Both Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park and Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument are UNESCO World Heritage Sites. These sites serve to interpret the natural and cultural features that represent the birth of the Hawaiian islands, and their return to the sea far to the northwest in the Monument.
The Liquid Galaxy can help tell the entire story in one place—with interpretive staff from the Park and the Monument—while providing critical information to the public about the active flow and safety issues.
Comments