Visualizing Space

An Interactive Spatio-Temporal Visualization of Meteorites Discoveries

Data Dynamos - Deema, Rahul, Swati, Ansh & Shakir

Introduction:

  • Meteorites are like celestial time capsules, encapsulate the enigmatic history of our solar system.
  • Our initiative introduces an interactive platform sourced from NASA’s Meteorite Landings, aiming to unveil the enthralling saga of these cosmic wonders.

Goal and problem statement:

  • Our Shiny app features three key visualizations—world map, density map, and bubble map—showcasing meteorite landings across regions, offering insights into their distribution, density, and mass significance.

  • The question we will be answering is- “What are the noticeable trends in meteor impact on Earth?”

Execution of plan:

  • Plotting of individual impact of meteor with various parameters like- mass and year.

  • Integration into an R Shiny application.

  • Revision and building on responsiveness of plot.

Data Overview:

  • Data source: NASA’s Meteorite Landings dataset.
  • Data Scope : Name, Recclass, Mass (g), Fall, Year
# A tibble: 10 × 6
   variables   types     missing_count missing_percent unique_count
   <chr>       <chr>             <int>           <dbl>        <int>
 1 name        character             0           0            45716
 2 id          numeric               0           0            45716
 3 nametype    character             0           0                2
 4 recclass    character             0           0              455
 5 mass (g)    numeric             131           0.287        12577
 6 fall        character             0           0                2
 7 year        numeric             291           0.637          266
 8 reclat      numeric            7315          16.0          12739
 9 reclong     numeric            7315          16.0          14641
10 GeoLocation character          7315          16.0          17101
# ℹ 1 more variable: unique_rate <dbl>

Data pre-processing:

For our pre-processing, we have done the following:

  • Dropped all the missing values to a get a new row value of 37,417.

  • Filtered for mass greater than 1, as there were lot of values close to 0.

  • Renamed and cleaned names of columns.

Plots

Point plot:

1). Which continents appear to have the highest density of meteorite impacts based on the data visualized in the provided plot?

Point plots:

  • High Impact Density: Europe and North America show a high density of meteorite impacts.

  • Moderate Impact Density: Parts of Asia and Africa display a moderate concentration of impacts.

  • Lower Impact Density: South America and Australia have fewer impacts compared to Europe and North America.

  • Minimal Impact Reporting: Antarctica has the least number of recorded impacts, potentially due to underreporting.

Density plot:

2). What does the thermal map suggest about the geographical distribution of meteorite impacts across the world?

Density plot:

  • Concentrated Zones: The map highlights areas with a significant concentration of meteorite impacts through thermal rings.

  • Major Impact Regions: Regions with the densest meteorite activity include parts of North America, Europe, and Asia.

  • Secondary Impact Zones: Lesser concentrations are visible in South America, Africa, and Australia. Oceans and Antarctica: The map shows minimal impact activity in the oceans and Antarctica. Data

  • Interpretation: The thermal rings suggest areas where meteorites are most commonly found or reported. Reporting Bias: The concentration of impacts may be influenced by the ease of meteorite discovery and reporting mechanisms in different regions.

Bubble plot:

3). How does the mass of meteorites vary across different regions of the world?

Bubble plot:

  • Variation in Mass: The map shows a variation in meteorite mass with some regions exhibiting larger meteorites than others.

  • Larger Meteorites: Regions with notably larger meteorites, as indicated by bigger bubbles, include parts of North America, Europe, and Asia. Smaller Meteorites:

  • Smaller meteorites, represented by smaller bubbles, are widely scattered across all continents.

  • Mass Concentration: There is a concentration of larger meteorite masses in the northern hemisphere.

  • Oceanic Impacts: Fewer large meteorites are noted in the oceans, likely due to the difficulty in discovering them.

Designing the Shiny App:

User Interactivity Features:

  1. Temporal Analysis

  2. Spatial Distribution

  3. Size and Classification Analysis

R Shiny application:

Link: https://rahulbangad.shinyapps.io/app1/

Impact and Applications:

  • This visualization serves as an engaging educational tool, aiding astronomy enthusiasts, students, and researchers in understanding meteorite impacts’ global distribution, sizes, and densities.
  • Researchers can leverage this visualization to conduct in-depth studies on meteorite falls over time, identifying trends, hotspots, and variations in impact frequencies across different periods and regions.

Future Enhancements:

  • Introducing a feature that allows users to access in-depth meteorite details simply by hovering over impact sites on the map.

  • This enhancement will provide immediate access to essential specifics such as meteorite names, formation years, and other crucial attributes, facilitating deeper insights into each meteorite.

Challenges:

  • Data Limitations: Addressing the challenge of underrepresented areas due to lack of reporting or discovery, especially in remote regions.

  • Technological Barriers: Overcoming technical limitations in handling and processing large datasets with high accuracy.

  • Public Engagement: Ensuring the Shiny app remains user-friendly and engaging for a diverse audience, encouraging public interaction and education.

Conclusion and Q&A.

  • Global Distribution: The data and visualizations reveal a global distribution of meteorite impacts, with varying densities and masses.

  • Density Concentration: Impact density is higher in populated regions, suggesting better reporting or more extensive discoveries due to human activity.

  • Mass Observations: Larger meteorite masses are found sporadically, with notable occurrences in the Northern Hemisphere, particularly North America, Europe, and Asia. Visualization Effectiveness:

    The Shiny app effectively visualizes complex data, allowing for interactive exploration of meteorite impacts by year and mass.

⚙ Data Dynamos