Geovisualization

Geovisualization or geovisualisation (short for geographic visualization), also known as cartographic

Like the related fields of scientific visualization[1] and information visualization[2] geovisualization
emphasizes knowledge construction over knowledge storage or information transmission.[1] To do this,
geovisualization communicates geospatial information in ways that, when combined with human
understanding, allow for data exploration and decision-making processes.[1][3][4]

Traditional, static maps have a limited exploratory capability; the graphical representations are inextricably
linked to the geographical information beneath. GIS and geovisualization allow for more interactive maps;
including the ability to explore different layers of the map, to zoom in or out, and to change the visual
appearance of the map, usually on a computer display.[5] Geovisualization represents a set of cartographic
technologies and practices that take advantage of the ability of modern microprocessors to render changes
to a map in real time, allowing users to adjust the mapped data on the fly.[1]

History
The term visualization is first mentioned in the cartographic literature at least as early as 1953, in an article
by University of Chicago geographer Allen K. Philbrick. New developments in the field of computer
science prompted the National Science Foundation to redefine the term in a 1987 report which placed
visualization at the convergence of computer graphics, image processing, computer vision, computer-aided
design, signal processing, and user interface studies[6] and emphasized both the knowledge creation and
hypothesis generation aspects of scientific visualization.[1]

Geovisualization developed as a field of research in the early 1980s, based largely on the work of French
graphic theorist Jacques Bertin.[4] Bertin's work on cartographic design and information visualization share
with the National Science Foundation report a focus on the potential for the use of "dynamic visual displays
as prompts for scientific insight and on the methods through which dynamic visual displays might leverage
perceptual cognitive processes to facilitate scientific thinking".[4]

Geovisualization has continued to grow as a subject of practice and research. The International
Cartographic Association (ICA) established a Commission on Visualization & Virtual Environments in
1995.

Related fields
Geovisualization is closely related to other visualization fields, such as scientific visualization[1] and
information visualization.[2] Owing to its roots in cartography, geovisualization contributes to these other
fields by way of the map metaphor, which "has been widely used to visualize non-geographic information
in the domains of information visualization and domain knowledge visualization."[3] It is also related to
urban simulation.

Applications
Geovisualization has made inroads in a diverse set of real-world situations calling for the decision-making
and knowledge creation processes it can provide. The following list provides a summary of some of these
applications as they are discussed in the geovisualization literature.

Wildland fire fighting

Firefighters have been using sandbox environments to rapidly and physically model topography and fire for
wildfire incident command strategic planning. The SimTable is a 3D interactive fire simulator, bringing
sandtable exercises to life. The SimTable uses advanced computer simulations to model fires in any area,
including local neighborhoods, utilizing actual slope, terrain, wind speed/direction, vegetation, and other
factors. SimTable Models were used in Arizona's largest fire on record, the Wallow Fire.[7]

Forestry

Geovisualizers, working with European foresters, used CommonGIS and Visualization Toolkit (VTK) to
visualize a large set of spatio-temporal data related to European forests, allowing the data to be explored by
non-experts over the Internet. The report summarizing this effort "uncovers a range of fundamental issues
relevant to the broad field of geovisualization and information visualization research".[8]

The research team cited the two major problems as the inability of the geovisualizers to convince the
foresters of the efficacy of geovisualization in their work and the foresters' misgivings over the dataset's
accessibility to non-experts engaging in "uncontrolled exploration". While the geovisualizers focused on
the ability of geovisualization to aid in knowledge construction, the foresters preferred the information-
communication role of more traditional forms of cartographic representation.[8]

Archaeology

Geovisualization provides archaeologists with a potential technique for mapping unearthed archaeological
environments as well as for accessing and exploring archaeological data in three dimensions.[9]

The implications of geovisualization for archaeology are not limited to advances in archaeological theory
and exploration but also include the development of new, collaborative relationships between
archaeologists and computer scientists.[10]

Environmental studies

Geovisualization tools provide multiple stakeholders with the ability to make balanced environmental
decisions by taking into account "the complex interacting factors that should be taken into account when
studying environmental changes".[11] Geovisualization users can use a georeferenced model to explore a
complex set of environmental data, interrogating a number of scenarios or policy options to determine a
best fit.[12]

Urban planning

Both planners and the general public can use geovisualization to explore real-world environments and
model 'what if' scenarios based on spatio-temporal data. While geovisualization in the preceding fields may
be divided into two separate domains—the private domain, in which professionals use geovisualization to
explore data and generate hypotheses, and the public domain, in which these professionals present their
"visual thinking" to the general public[5]—planning relies more heavily than many other fields on
collaboration between the general public and professionals.

Planners use geovisualization as a tool for modeling the environmental interests and policy concerns of the
general public. Jiang et al.[5] mention two examples, in which "3D photorealistic representations are used to
show urban redevelopment [and] dynamic computer simulations are used to show possible pollution
diffusion over the next few years." The widespread use of the Internet by the general public has
implications for these collaborative planning efforts, leading to increased participation by the public while
decreasing the amount of time it takes to debate more controversial planning decisions.[5]

See also
Animated mapping
Cartography
Computer-aided design
Computer graphics
Computer vision
Exploratory data analysis
Geographic information science
Geographic information systems
Geography
Geoinformatics
Geoscope
Image processing
Signal processing

References
1. MacEachren, A.M. and Kraak, M.J. 1997 Exploratory cartographic visualization: advancing
the agenda. Computers & Geosciences, 23(4), pp. 335–343.
2. Stuart K. Card, Mackinlay, J.D., and Shneidermann, B. 1999. Reading in Information
Visualization: Using Vision to Think. San Francisco: Morgan Kaumann Publishers.
3. Jiang, B., and Li, Z. 2005. Editorial: Geovisualization: Design, Enhanced Visual Tools and
Applications. The Cartographic Journal, 42(1), pp. 3–4.
4. MacEachren, A.M. 2004. Geovisualization for knowledge construction and decision support.
IEEE Computer Graphics and Applications, 24(1), pp.13–17.
5. Jiang, B., Huang, B., and Vasek, V. 2003. Geovisualisation for Planning Support Systems. In
Planning Support Systems in Practice, Geertman, S., and Stillwell, J. (Eds.). Berlin:
Springer.
6. McCormick, B.H., DeFanti, T.A., and Brown, M.D. (Eds.). 1987. Visualization in Scientific
Computing. Computer Graphics, 21(6). p. 63.
7. http://www.kob.com/article/stories/S2149915.shtml?cat=0
8. Andrienko, G., Andrienko, N., Jankowski, P, Keim, D., Kraak, M.-J., MacEachren, A.M., and
Wrobel, S. 2007. Geovisual analytics for spatial decision support: Setting the research
agenda. International Journal of Geographical Information Science, 21(8), pp. 839-857.
9. Watters, M. 2005. Geovisualization: an Example from the Catholme Ceremonial Complex.
Archaeological Prospection, 13, pp. 282-290.
10. Watters, M. 2005. Review of Exploring Geovisualization, Dykes, J., MacEachren, A.M., and
Kraak, M.J. (Eds.). Amsterdam: Elsevier Science, 2004. In Archaeological Prospection, 12,
pp. 265-266.
11. Gasco, Luis; Asensio, Cesar; de Arcas, Guillermo (2017-05-15). "Communicating airport
noise emission data to the general public". Science of the Total Environment. 586: 836–848.
Bibcode:2017ScTEn.586..836G (https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2017ScTEn.586..836G).
doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.02.063 (https://doi.org/10.1016%2Fj.scitotenv.2017.02.063).
PMID 28214112 (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28214112).
12. Danada, J., Dias, E., Romao, T., Correia, N., Trabuco, A., Santos, C., Serpa, J., Costa, M.,
Camara, A. 2005. Mobile Environmental Visualization. The Cartographic Journal, 42(1), pp.
61-68.

Further reading
Priyanka Mehta and Saumya Pareek.2012.3D Visualization for Geo-referenced Terrain &
Soil-subsurface: An innovative approach for visualization of soil subsurface
Cartwright, W. 1997. New media and their application to the production of map products.
Computers & Geosciences, 23(4), pp. 447–456.
Dykes, J., A. M. MacEachren, and M.-J. Kraak eds. 2005. Exploring Geovisualization.
Amsterdam: Elsevier.
Kraak, M.-J., and A. M. MacEachren. 1999. Visualization for exploration of spatial data
(editorial introduction to special issue). International Journal of Geographical Information
Science 13 (4):285–287.
Kraak, M. J., and A. M. MacEachren. 2005. Geovisualization and GIScience. Cartography
and Geographic Information Science 32 (2):67–68.
MacEachren, A. M., and M. J. Kraak. 1997. Exploratory cartographic visualization:
Advancing the agenda. Computers & Geosciences 23 (4):335–343
MacEachren, A. M., and M.-J. Kraak. 2001. Research challenges in geovisualization.
Cartography and Geographic Information Science 28 (1):3–12.
MacEachren, A. M., M. Gahegan, W. Pike, I. Brewer, G. Cai, E. Lengerich, and F. Hardisty.
2004. Geovisualization for knowledge construction and decision-support. IEEE Computer
Graphics & Applications 24 (1):13–17.
Philbrick, A.K. 1953. Toward a unity of cartographical forms and geographical content.
Professional Geographer, 5(5), pp. 11–15.
Taylor, D.R.F. 1994. Geographic Information Systems: the microcomputer and modern
cartography. In Geographic Information Systems: The Microcomputer and Modern
Cartography, D.R.F. Taylor and A.M. MacEachren (Eds.). Oxford: Pergamon, pp. 333–342.

External links
ICA Commission on GeoVisualization (http://geoanalytics.net/ica) (since 2007)
ICA Commission on Visualization and Virtual Environments (https://web.archive.org/web/20
050824135152/http://kartoweb.itc.nl/ICAvis/) (1995-2007)
Geovisualization at the National Cancer Institute (https://web.archive.org/web/20051110030
002/http://gis.cancer.gov/nci/geovisualization.html)
GeoViz Toolkit (http://www.geovista.psu.edu/geoviztoolkit/index.html)—Open Source Toolkit
for Geovizualization
Penn State GeoVISTA Center (http://www.geovista.psu.edu/)
Avizo Visualization Software (http://www.avizo3d.com)—software framework for
geosciences

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