Background

To support understanding the science of the lake, the UC Davis Tahoe Environmental Research Center (TERC) releases an annual State of the Lake Report (SOTL) that details the trends, forecasts, and current status of the environmental factors contributing to the Tahoe Basin’s unique ecosystem. TERC wanted to visualize these findings in an interactive touchscreen display for the Tahoe Science Center.

What we made

Lake Tahoe In Depth was created to engage regional visitors with both the environmental science being performed ongoing around the lake and with information about ways to experience the area. Starting in 2016 and continuing through periodic phases in 2018, TERC worked with Stamen to visualize these findings into a Tahoe visitor-focused interactive touchscreen display — currently on display at the Tahoe Science Center as well as at a handful of other visitor-oriented locations around the lake. In addition to highlighting the important scientific findings of SOTL, these exhibits provide additional media and information that helps contextualize the lake for visitors of all interests. This marriage of scientific activities with tourism information creates a unique application, designed for the specific needs of TERC’s visitors.