Cartographic Visualization: Analytical and Communication Tools

Abstract

Visualization is attracting more and more attention in a variety of disciplines including the domains of geographic informtion systems and cartography, since the US National Science Foundation workshop held on the Visualization in Scientific Computing initiative. The focus of this paper is on cartographic visualization as analytical and communication tools. To achieve this aim, the paper begins with an introduction concerning visualization research pursuits. This is followed by the definition and scope of cartographic visualization, then the features of cartographic visualization involving animation, interactive exploration and hypermedia are elaborated. Three technical levels of visualization i.e. hardware/software, visualization tools and applications, are also presented.