Nodes on ropes: a comprehensive data and control flow for steering ensemble simulations

Area of Science:

• Environmental Engineering
• Computational Fluid Dynamics
• Disaster Management

Background:

• Flood disasters pose significant risks, necessitating improved simulation and management techniques.
• Investigating emergency actions via simulation is limited by a lack of integrated frameworks.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a comprehensive framework for steering flood simulations, addressing uncertainty and transparency.
• To enable domain experts to incorporate local knowledge into simulation setups.

Main Methods:

• Users steer parameter studies via the World Lines interface to manage input uncertainties.
• A novel meta-flow extends data-flow networks for abstracting parameter control with visual feedback.
• Data-flow diagrams visualize steering information and simulation results.

Main Results:

• The framework accounts for environmental uncertainties, like levee breaches, and their impact on simulation confidence.
• Simulation steering is made comprehensible by exposing system internals.
• A case study demonstrated comparing parameter space regions for optimal flood protection strategies.

Conclusions:

• The proposed framework enhances flood simulation steering by integrating uncertainty management and transparency.
• It empowers domain experts to actively participate in refining simulation models for emergency preparedness.
• This approach facilitates informed decision-making for effective flood disaster response.