Cartographic visualization of density: exploring the opportunities and constraints of Heat Maps

The authors of the review aim to understand and assess cartographic Heat Maps’ (HM) designs, tools, and applications. The paper consists of two parts. First describes HM in the context of neocartography and map design by tackling such issues as definition, input data, methods of density determination and generalization, colour schemes, legend construction, and base maps. The second part assesses the range of 17 tools used for creating HM. Tools are divided into non-GIS tools (visualization tools and programming libraries) and GIS applications (desktop and webGIS). GIS desktop software has been selected due to its popularity and wide application. Paper presents an expert assessment of this software with the use of a research questionnaire. The analysis made it possible to develop a division of tools based on their embedding in computer programs and applications and taking into account the types of visualization. It also made it possible to indicate tools that can be used by both professional GIS users (e.g. analysts, cartographers) and the general public, including teachers using HM to visualize geo data for geography lessons. The limitation of the review was the analysis from the expert’s point of view. It would be desirable to include novices perspectives in future studies due to the wide demand for visualization.

Determination and evaluation of spatio-temporal trends on the example of PM10 concentration in Poland (2000−2018)

Increasing amounts of rapidly growing data are the driving force behind proposing and automating new processing, enabling the extraction of useful information from data. One of such possibilities is determining trends to consider in terms of time and space. Thus far, the analysis of these aspects has been separate and lacked automated tools. Therefore, the authors proposed, implemented, and tested a tool for analyzing spatio-temporal linear trends. The tool was tested on PM10 concentration data in the years 2000–2018. The results, presented as cartographic visualization, were then evaluated, both in terms of time and space. The proposed approach facilitates analyzing spatio-temporal trends and assessing their accuracy; it can be developed using other types of analyzed trends or considering additional factors that influence the trend by using cokriging.

Contemporary status of topographic mapping in Ukraine

The fundamentals and contemporary status of topographic mapping of Ukraine’s territory has been studied. Prior to declaration of Ukraine’s independence, its territory was covered with 1:10,000 to 1:1,000,000 scale topographic maps made by sub-divisions of the Chief Department of Geodesy and Cartography affiliated with the Council of Ministers of the USSR (GUGK USSR) and sub-divisions of the Military Topographic Service (MTS) of the USSR Armed Forces. Topographic mapping related cooperation between these institutions has been described. Topographic study of Ukraine’s territory as at 1991 has been subject to close analysis, with due consideration of the coordinate systems used for topographic maps. During the first years after Ukraine’s independence declaration topographic maps in Ukraine were made according to the previously effective Soviet instructions in the 1942 coordinate systems and 1977 Baltic height system. Since mid 1990s, Ukraine enjoyed transition from analog technology of making topographic maps to digital one. The contemporary legal and statutory support of topographic mapping in Ukraine has been studied; the implementation since 1 January 2007 of the UCS-2000 national geodetic reference coordinate system and the height system measurement works have been analyzed. Focus has been made on obsolescence of information of contemporary topographic maps and on extensive deprivation of secrecy for topographic maps in 2000s. Critical for the development of topographic mapping in Ukraine is now the Law of Ukraine “On National Geospatial Data Infrastructure” adopted in 2020. The Topographic Service of the Armed Forces (TS AF) of Ukraine carried out big scopes of works to update the topographic maps related to Russia’s military operations against Ukraine.

Status of the cartographic model

The author presents the proposal for a map as a model based on the current concepts in the philosophy of science. It is the attempt to define a map within the general theory of the model – in its ontological, semantical, and epistemological aspect. Treating a map as a model of reality boils down to specifying several characteristics determining its character. The article primarily aims at broadening the discussion on what a map is and what defines it as a model of reality. A new definition has been proposed in effect of the deliberations based on the analysis of models’ typology in the sphere of philosophy.

Development of metadata for historical cartographic resources associated with the Paris Peace Conference (1919−1920)

In the era of interdisciplinary research supported by IT solutions, a special role is played by digital source repositories. The digital turn has contributed to their considerable development, and the application of new technologies has largely changed the current methods of research work. This facilitates pooling and structuring dispersed collections e.g. as part of thematic repositories, which collect and share thematically related resources. Metadata, which allow effective searching and identification of resources, are an important element of their function. The objective of the article is to present a procedure for the development of metadata aimed at creation of a thematic database of dispersed sources remaining after the Paris Peace Conference ending World War I. Based on the metadata development procedure, the author discusses the diagnosed problems associated with e.g. the specificity of the analyzed sources.

Application of GIS multi-criteria analysis and cartographic data presentation methods for public transportation optimization: the case of the town of Mińsk Mazowiecki

The author attempts to apply a multi-criteria spatial analysis of issues related to urban public transport in terms of optimizing its usage and accessibility. Publicly available spatial and statistical data were used. Desktop GIS computer software was the primary tool and work environment – due to its popularity and wide interdisciplinary application in studying geospatial phenomena, processes, and dependencies. The article consists of two parts. The first identifies the research area, indicates the data used and the methodology of the conducted analysis, while the second presents the results of analyses in optimizing the functioning of public transport in Mińsk Mazowiecki (Mazowieckie Voivodeship, Poland) and recommendations that may contribute to disseminating the use of multi-criteria analyses in medium-sized cities.

The method for the quality evaluation of open geospatial data for creation and updating of datasets for National Spatial Data Infrastructure in Ukraine

The purpose of the article is to present the research on method of the quality evaluation of published open geospatial data and its implementation in Ukraine. The method of the quality evaluation of open geospatial data considers the international standard ISO 19157 “Geographic information. Data quality”. This method is to determine the number of points or levels (maximum – 5). The research was carried out for the evaluation of open geoinformation resources for production of geospatial datasets, as defined in the Ukrainian Law on NSDI. The authors evaluated the quality of 142 open geoinformation resources and other information resources (materials) for the production and updating of 34 geospatial datasets for the development of NSDI in Ukraine. The authors present the example of the quality evaluation of geospatial data for datasets: “State Geodetic Reference Coordinate System UCS-2000”, “State Geodetic Network”, “Geographical Names” and “Administrative Units” because they are the components of the Core Reference Dataset of NSDI. Limitations of the research were determined by the adopted the Law of Ukraine “On National Spatial Data Infrastructure” and the Order for NSDI functioning in Ukraine and the requirements of the international standard ISO 19157 “Geographic information. Data quality”. The results of the research will be employed to evaluate the quality of NSDI implementation in Ukraine. The proposed method allows evaluating the quality of open geospatial dataset before using them for analysis and modeling of terrain, phenomena. This method takes into account the quality of geospatial data, and its related requirements for their production, updating and publication.

Geometric and semantic quality assessments of building features in OpenStreetMap for some areas of Istanbul

Nowadays volunteered geographic information (VGI) and collaborative mapping projects such as OpenStreetMap (OSM) have gained popularity as they not only offer free data but also allow crowdsourced contributions. Spatial data entry in this manner creates quality concerns for further use of the VGI data. In this regard, this article focuses on the assessments of geometric and semantic quality of the OSM building features (BFs) against a large-scale topographic (TOPO) data belonging to some areas of Istanbul. The comparison is carried out based on the one-to-one matched BFs according to a geometric matching ratio. In geometric terms, various parameters of position (i.e. X, Y), size (i.e. area, perimeter and granularity), shape (i.e. convexity, circularity, elongation, equivalent rectangular index, rectangularity and roughness index), and orientation (i.e. orientation angle) elements are computed and compared. In semantic terms, BF type coherences are evaluated. According to the findings of geometric quality, the average positional difference was less than three meters. In addition, the perimeter values tended to decrease while area and granularity values tended to increase in OSM data against TOPO data. Those showed that the level of the detail of the OSM BFs was lower than TOPO BFs in general. This was also confirmed by the decreasing tendency of shape complexity according to the parameters of shape element. Orientation angle differences was often low except for some special cases. It was found that the scale of the OSM dataset, even though not homogenous, approximately corresponded to the lower limit of medium scale maps (i.e. 1:10,000) or a slightly smaller scale. According to the findings of semantic quality, in case of the presence of specific type definition, the coherence was rather high between OSM and TOPO BFs while the most OSM BFs did not have a specific type attribute. This study showed that the matching process needed some improvements while the followed approach was largely successful in the evaluation of the matched buildings from geometric and semantic aspects.

Cybercartography and education: research and teaching with the Residential Schools Land Memory Atlas

This paper sheds light on intersections between teaching and research in the Cybercartographic Residential Schools Land Memory Atlas (RSLMA), which is the central output of the Residential Schools Land Memory Mapping Project (RSLMMP). Building on previous work in Cybercartography, the RSLMMP has further contributed to the integration of research and education and the emergence of new research and education relationships. Viewing the atlas as a project output comprised of iterative processes along multiple dimensions allows us to appreciate limitations as challenges for further iterations, including new related projects and ongoing volunteer work with students. In addition to participating in the national response to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada’s Calls to Action, this project – including the atlas – provides a model for a unique blend of teaching and research and the basis for further and new collaborations with a variety of different partners, including Residential School survivors. As a reconciliation project, the Residential Schools Land Memory Atlas further contributes to the intercultural bridge building aims of its parent, the Lake Huron Treaty Atlas, as it forges on in new directions.

The cartographic visualisation of spatial data. An example of nature protection areas in the Podlaskie Voivodship (north-eastern Poland)

The authors attempt to visualise nature conservation issues in the Podlaskie Voivodship using a series of small-scale thematic maps. Publicly available spatial and statistical data was used. The authors discuss the effects of applying the adopted methodological solutions. Some of them present a new approach to cartographic visualisation of spatial data. It may be an opportunity to look at various visualisation methods, their effectiveness, and the possibility of visualising nature issues on small-scale thematic maps.