Abstract
AbstractThis paper surveys visualization and interaction techniques for geospatial networks from a total of 95 papers. Geospatial networks are graphs where nodes and links can be associated with geographic locations. Examples can include social networks, trade and migration, as well as traffic and transport networks. Visualizing geospatial networks poses numerous challenges around the integration of both network and geographical information as well as additional information such as node and link attributes, time and uncertainty. Our overview analyses existing techniques along four dimensions: (i) the representation of geographical information, (ii) the representation of network information, (iii) the visual integration of both and (iv) the use of interaction. These four dimensions allow us to discuss techniques with respect to the trade‐offs they make between showing information across all these dimensions and how they solve the problem of showing as much information as necessary while maintaining readability of the visualization. https://geonetworks.github.io.
Highlights
Geospatial networks are graphs whose nodes and links can be associated with geographic locations
We found our design space, dimensions, and classifications to best capture the trade-offs required in designing geospatial network visualizations and to provide a conceptual framework perhaps similar to the design space described by space-time cubes [BDA*17] or map-like visualizations [HHS20]
Combined with an abstract geography representation, we have found techniques that display nodes in a circular, spatially ordered layout, or on a single spatially ordered axis, with the network topology shown as a chord diagram [AS14; Hen13] (Figures 6(b) & 16(a)) or arc diagram [XC09] (Figure 6(a))
Summary
Surveys on network visualization have been compiled for many aspects in networks such as techniques for large graphs [vLKS*11], group structures in graphs [VBW15], dynamic graphs [BBDW14], multivariate networks [NMSL19], temporal multivariate networks [AAK*14], multilayer networks [MGM*19], and graph visualization in general [HMM00]. Surveys on edge bundling techniques [ZPYQ13; LHT17a] frequently include techniques with demonstrated applications to geospatial networks, or even designed for this purpose, but they lack a wider discussion on visualization of geospatial networks in general. Geospatial networks have been discussed in a set of smaller surveys, focusing mostly on node-link diagrams, graph drawing, flow maps, trajectories [HCC*19] or specific applications such as crime [Whe15] or climate [NBD*15]. Rodgers [Rod05] provided a smaller overview of only node-link representations and graph drawing techniques. Wolff discussed the use of graph drawing, node-link visualizations, and flow maps in cartography [Wol13]. Neither of these present a full survey or comprehensive typology of geospatial network visualizations. To the best of our knowledge, ours is the most comprehensive survey on the visualization of geospatial networks
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