Animation and the role of map design in scientific visualization

David Dibiase, Alan M. MacEachren, John B. Krygier, Catherine Reeves

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

33 Scopus citations

Abstract

Scientists visualize data for a range of purposes, from exploring unfamiliar data sets to communicating insights revealed by visual analyses. As the supply of numerical environmental data has increased, so has the need for effective visual methods, especially for exploratory data analysis. Map animation is particularly attractive to earth system scientists who typically study large spatio-temporal data sets. In addition to the “visual variables” of static maps, animated maps are composed of three basic design elements or “dynamic variables”-scene duration, rate of change between scenes, and scene order. The dynamic variables can be used to emphasize the location of a phenomenon, emphasize its attributes, or visualize change in its spatial, temporal, and attribute dimensions. In combination with static maps, graphs, diagrams, images, and sound, animation enhances analysts’ ability to express data in a variety of complementary forms.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)265-266
Number of pages2
JournalCartography and Geographic Information Systems
Volume19
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - Jan 1 1992

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • General Computer Science
  • General Earth and Planetary Sciences

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