Monday, August 20, 2018

Mapping One Long Hot Summer


The Berliner Morgenpost has visualized the effects of the record breaking heat this summer in a series of satellite images. The record temperatures in Germany this year has silted riverbeds, turned green parks into seeming deserts and parched arable land.

In Drought in Germany - Satellite Image Comparison the newspaper has used before & after satellite images to show the effects of the extreme heat on the environment. The visualizations use satellite imagery from May and July / August of the same locations to provide a series of before & after comparisons. Each visualization includes a slide control which allows you to swipe between the two sets of aerial imagery.


In the UK nearly every major media outlet has reported on the previously undiscovered archaeological sites being revealed by the effect of the relentless sun on the landscape. The outlines of prehistoric features are suddenly emerging in aerial imagery. Normally these ancient features are hidden by lush vegetation.


The BBC's Hidden Landscapes the Heatwave is Revealing includes aerial imagery from around the UK which reveals some of these newly discovered prehistoric sites. These images includes stone-age ditches and post-holes, the footprints of demolished mansions and even the outlines of old Victorian gardens.


The Washington Post has visualized this record breaking summer in its Red Hot Planet: This Summer’s Punishing and Historic Heat in 7 Maps and Charts. As the article's title suggests the Post has compiled a number of maps and charts which document the record breaking temperatures which have been recorded around the world this year.

Across the northern hemisphere countries have been experiencing sustained extreme temperatures. The Posts' published maps and charts show how this summer has broken previous temperature records in North America, Europe and nearly everywhere else on the planet.

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