Using Java to interact with geo-referenced VRML within a virtual field course

Virtual reality technology is providing earth scientists and cartographers with new, exciting and interactive ways to model the world and real-life phenomena. The Virtual Field Course (VFC) is developing software to enable students to experience fieldwork environments through multimedia, including virtual reality. The VFC aims to exploit the interactive nature of VR to enhance fieldwork teaching and learning.During preliminary development of a spatial interface for a Virtual Field Course geo-referenced multimedia database, a two-dimensional Java interface has been designed to provide information and interaction with three-dimensional VRML terrain models. During this process both the scope and the constraints of geo-referenced VRML have been examined. Recommendations about geo-referencing VRML models, terrain construction and Java interfacing are made and potentially useful areas for future development are identified.