SE Valley Times

Students at Arizona State University have developed a virtual reality experience for a meteorology course that uses real-world sound and data to immerse users in the middle of a hurricane.

Rachael Kaye, a doctoral student in the School of Arts, Media and Engineering, who also taught the Introduction to Meteorology course this summer, created the “Hurricane Heroes” experience with her fellow student workers in Meteor Studio.

“A big part of my motivation was giving students a sense of urgency and putting them in a position to think about, ‘What would I do if I found myself in this situation?’ And then having them visualize it in a more hands-on way,” Kaye said.

The ASU Online class, open to students in any major, includes an immersive module called “Hurricane Heroes.” Students can choose to use a headset, which is mailed to them for a three-dimensional experience or watch a two-dimensional version on their computer screens.

The VR experience is presented in three acts as a story with interactive questions throughout, Kaye said.

“Each act focuses on a different career related to meteorology, and each act is also a different time frame, either before or after a hurricane makes landfall in Florida,” she said.

“In each act, they're in a different role. So two days before the storm hits, they’re a broadcast meteorologist. Then the day before the storm hits, they're on a hurricane hunter flight into the eye of the storm.

“The third act is the day after it hits, and they're part of emergency rescue support, surveying damage and helping to rescue a family.”

The experience is based on Hurricane Irma, which struck Florida in 2017 and caused widespread damage. The course uses real data from satellite radar and real sound from hurricane hunter flights during that storm.

“I was excited to use all this real-life data," Kaye said. "But real-life data isn't always presented in an appealing or easy-to-understand format. So part of the process was making it readable for students but still reflecting the real information.”

Combining data with an engaging story posed challenges for creating an immersive experience.

“I’m the content expert and none of us were creative writers," she noted. "So that took months of back and forth."

Artists and developers then created environments matching the story’s needs.

“And then I’d review it and would point out where parts needed more accuracy regarding careers or environments,” said Kaye who has worked as both TV and radio meteorologist for several years.

Her doctoral research focuses on developing computer and VR games for educational purposes.

“How do you bring all of the right pieces together to make something like this happen?” she asked rhetorically.

While not teaching Introduction to Meteorology (GPH 212) this semester, “Hurricane Heroes” will continue being used for its lab component (GPH 214).

Dion Pimentel graduated from ASU with a master’s degree in computer science; he now works as freelance game developer. He remarked how working on “Hurricane Heroes” boosted his career prospects significantly while at Meteor Studio.

“It was super representative of team scenarios within gaming industry,” he explained. “Working at Meteor Studio came with expectations from stakeholders along nuances like deadlines & funding – It felt akin working within that world.”

Kaye emphasized importance highlighting career aspects through coursework:

“Each act showcases distinct careers tied into meteorology," she stated firmly adding "Everyone loves making fun outta’ meteorologists but there’s substantial thought processes involved behind scenes scientifically speaking - I wanted class gaining better understanding over these dynamics.”