The Visualization and Data Analysis group's mission is to conduct service, development, and research activities that aid in the knowledge discovery and data analysis process for researchers at the University of Texas at Austin. The SciVis group services include teaching an introduction to SciVis concepts training course several times throughout the year, as well as leading a seminar series covering development concepts for more advanced users. The group operates the ACES Visualization Laboratory (VisLab), which is a 2900 square foot, immersive visualization facilitiy that is powered by a 24-processor SGI Onyx2 and has a 180 degree curved display in conjunction with a rear projected tiled display. The group also develops and distributes software, maintains the SciVis hardware, and produces end user documentation. Additionally, the group's development responsibilities include developing tools and software to make the use of the facilities easier, to enable better use of the facilitiies, and for distribution to users for use both inside and outside the VisLab. The SciVis group includes scientists and specialists with extensive experience supporting the visualization needs of the scientific community at the University of Texas.

The SciVis group is currently participating in several research projects. Based on a grant awarded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) Information Technology Research (ITR) program, the group is working on a project called "Procedural Representation and Visualization Enabling Personalized Computational Fluid Dynamics. A second project is "Statistically Based Feature Detection," led by Dr. Gaither and Greg Johnson. In addition, Greg Johnson and Dr. Bill Geisler are researching the "Perception of Depth in an Immersive Environment."