Scatter chart in geographic coordinates
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Syntax
geoscatter(lat,lon)
geoscatter(lat,lon,A)
geoscatter(lat,lon,A,C)
geoscatter(___,"filled")
geoscatter(___,mkr)
geoscatter(tbl,latvar,lonvar)
geoscatter(tbl,latvar,lonvar,"filled")
geoscatter(ax,___)
geoscatter(___,Name,Value)
s = geoscatter(___)
Description
Vector Data
geoscatter(lat,lon)
creates a scatter plot with markers in geographic coordinates. By default, the function uses circular markers. Specify the latitude coordinates in degrees using lat
, and specify the longitude coordinates in degrees using lon
. If the current axes is not a geographic or map axes, or if there is no current axes, then the function creates the scatter plot in a new geographic axes.
geoscatter(lat,lon,A)
specifies the circle sizes in points squared. To use the same size for all the circles, specify A
as a scalar. To plot each circle with a different size, specify A
as a vector of the same size as lat
and lon
.
geoscatter(lat,lon,A,C)
specifies the circle colors. You can specify one color for all the circles, or you can vary the color. For example, you can plot all red circles by specifying C
as "red"
.
example
geoscatter(___,"filled")
fills in the circles. You can use the "filled"
option with any of the input argument combinations in the previous syntaxes.
example
geoscatter(___,mkr)
specifies the marker type.
example
Table Data
geoscatter(tbl,latvar,lonvar)
plots the variables latvar
and lonvar
from the table tbl
. To plot one data set, specify one variable for latvar
and one variable for lonvar
. To plot multiple data sets, specify multiple variables for latvar
, lonvar
, or both. If both arguments specify multiple variables, they must specify the same number of variables. (Since R2022b)
example
geoscatter(tbl,latvar,lonvar,"filled")
plots the specified variables from the table with filled circles. (Since R2022b)
example
Additional Options
geoscatter(ax,___)
plots into the geographic axes or map axes specified by ax
. Specify the axes as the first argument in any of the previous syntaxes.
geoscatter(___,Name,Value)
specifies properties of the scatter plot using one or more name-value arguments. For a list of properties, see Scatter Properties.
example
s = geoscatter(___)
returns the Scatter
object. Use s
to set properties after creating the plot. For a full list of properties, see Scatter Properties.
Examples
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Create Geographic Scatter Plot
Open Live Script
Specify the latitude and longitude coordinates of several locations in Boston. Create a scatter plot using filled markers.
lat = [42.3501 42.3598 42.3626 42.3668 42.3557];lon = [-71.0870 -71.0662 -71.0789 -71.0801 -71.0662];geoscatter(lat,lon,"filled")
Zoom out of the plot by adjusting the limits.
geolimits([42.3456 42.3694],[-71.0930 -71.0536])
Use Markers with Varying Sizes and Colors
Open Live Script
Create a scatter plot using the latitude and longitude coordinates of several points along the Mississippi River. Specify the optional size and color arguments as vectors. The color values map to colors in the colormap.
lat = [32.30 33.92 35.17 36.98 37.69 38.34];lon = [-91.05 -91.18 -90.09 -89.11 -89.52 -90.37];A = 100*[5 12 15 3 10 3];C = [1 2 2 3 1 1];geoscatter(lat,lon,A,C,"filled")
Zoom out by adjusting the latitude and longitude limits of the plot. Then, change the basemap to a terrain basemap.
geolimits([31.60 38.91],[-95.61 -84.27])geobasemap grayterrain
Specify Marker Symbol
Open Live Script
Specify the latitude and longitude coordinates of several European cities. Create a scatter plot using magenta diamond markers.
lat = [48.85 51.5 40.41 41.9 52.52 52.36 52.22 47.49 44.42 50.07 48.20 46.94];lon = [2.35 -0.12 -3.70 12.49 13.40 4.90 21.01 19.04 26.10 14.43 16.37 7.44];geoscatter(lat,lon,"m","d")
Zoom out by adjusting the latitude and longitude limits of the plot. Then, change the basemap to a topographic basemap.
geolimits([30 60],[-13 43])geobasemap topographic
Change Marker Color and Line Width
Open Live Script
Specify the latitude and longitude coordinates of several locations in Boston.
lat = [42.3501 42.3598 42.3626 42.3668 42.3557];lon = [-71.0870 -71.0662 -71.0789 -71.0801 -71.0662];
Create a scatter plot and set the marker edge color, marker face color, and line width.
geoscatter(lat,lon,70,"MarkerEdgeColor",[0.9290 0.6940 0.1250], ... "MarkerFaceColor",[0.3010 0.7450 0.9330],"LineWidth",2)
Zoom out of the plot by adjusting the limits. Then, change the basemap.
geolimits([42.3456 42.3694],[-71.0930 -71.0536])geobasemap streets-dark
Plot Data from Table
Open Live Script
Since R2022b
A convenient way to plot data from a table is to pass the table to the geoscatter
function and specify the variables to plot.
Load a file containing county data into the workspace as a table. The table includes latitude and longitude coordinates in the table variables Latitude
and Longitude
, respectively.
tbl = readtable("counties.xlsx");
Plot the latitude and longitude coordinates over a two-tone basemap. Return the Scatter
object as s
.
s = geoscatter(tbl,"Latitude","Longitude");geobasemap grayland
Change the marker style and color of the plot by setting the Marker
and MarkerEdgeColor
properties.
s.Marker = "*";s.MarkerEdgeColor = "m";
Plot Table Data with Custom Colors and Marker Sizes
Open Live Script
Since R2022b
One way to plot data from a table and customize the colors and marker sizes is to set the ColorVariable
and SizeData
properties. You can set these properties as name-value arguments when you call the geoscatter
function, or you can set them on the Scatter
object later.
For example, load a file containing county data into the workspace as a table. The table includes latitude and longitude coordinates in the table variables Latitude
and Longitude
, respectively.
tbl = readtable("counties.xlsx");
Plot the latitude and longitude coordinates using filled markers. Return the Scatter
object as s
.
s = geoscatter(tbl,"Latitude","Longitude","filled");
Change the marker sizes to 100
points by setting the SizeData
property.
s.SizeData = 100;
Vary the marker colors by setting the ColorVariable
property to a table variable. Then, add a colorbar.
s.ColorVariable = "Population2010";c = colorbar;c.Label.String = "County Population in 2010";
Input Arguments
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lat
— Latitude coordinates in degrees
vector with elements in range [–90, 90]
Latitude coordinates in degrees, specified as a vector with elements in the range [–90, 90]. The vector can contain NaN
values.
The sizes of lat
and lon must match.
Example: [43.0327 38.8921 44.0435]
Data Types: single
| double
lon
— Longitude coordinates in degrees
vector
Longitude coordinates in degrees, specified as a vector. The vector can contain NaN
values.
The sizes of lat and lon
must match.
Example: [-107.5556 -77.0269 -72.5565]
Data Types: single
| double
A
— Marker size, in points squared
36
(default) | scalar | vector | []
Marker size with units in points squared, specified as a numeric scalar, numeric vector, or empty array ([]
). The size controls the area of each marker.
Numeric scalar — Use a uniform marker size. For example,
A = 100
creates all markers with an area of 100 points squared.Numeric vector — Use a different marker size for each data point. The size of
A
must match the size of lat and lon.Empty brackets (
[]
) — Use the default marker size of36
points squared. Use this option when you want to specify the color input argument and use the default marker area, such asgeoscatter(lat,lon,[],c)
.
The SizeData property of the scatter object stores the marker sizes.
Example: 50
Example: [36 25 25 17 46]
C
— Marker color
RGB triplet | three-column matrix of RGB triplets | vector | "r"
| "g"
| "b"
| ...
Marker color, specified as one of these options:
RGB triplet or color name — Plot all markers with the same color.
Three-column matrix of RGB triplets — Use different colors for each marker. Each row of the matrix specifies an RGB triplet color for the corresponding marker. The number of rows must equal the length of lat and lon.
Vector — Use different colors for each marker and linearly map values in
C
to the current colormap. The length ofC
must equal the length oflat
andlon
. To change the colormap for the axes, use the colormap function.
An RGB triplet is a three-element row vector whose elements specify the intensities of the red, green, and blue components of the color. The intensities must be in the range [0,1]
; for example, [0.4 0.6 0.7]
. Alternatively, you can specify some common colors by name. This table lists the long and short color name options and the equivalent RGB triplet values.
Color Name | Short Name | RGB Triplet | Appearance |
---|---|---|---|
"red" | "r" | [1 0 0] | |
"green" | "g" | [0 1 0] | |
"blue" | "b" | [0 0 1] | |
"cyan" | "c" | [0 1 1] | |
"magenta" | "m" | [1 0 1] | |
"yellow" | "y" | [1 1 0] | |
"black" | "k" | [0 0 0] | |
"white" | "w" | [1 1 1] | |
When you specify marker colors, the geoscatter
function sets the MarkerFaceColor
property of the Scatter
object to "flat"
and stores the marker colors in the CData
property.
Example: "green"
Example: "g"
Example: [0 1 0]
mkr
— Marker symbol
"o"
(default) | "+"
| "*"
| "."
| "x"
| ...
Marker symbol, specified as one of these values.
Marker | Description | Resulting Marker |
---|---|---|
"o" | Circle | |
"+" | Plus sign | |
"*" | Asterisk | |
"." | Point | |
"x" | Cross | |
"_" | Horizontal line | |
"|" | Vertical line | |
"square" | Square | |
"diamond" | Diamond | |
"^" | Upward-pointing triangle | |
"v" | Downward-pointing triangle | |
">" | Right-pointing triangle | |
"<" | Left-pointing triangle | |
"pentagram" | Pentagram | |
"hexagram" | Hexagram |
"filled"
— Option to fill the interior of the markers
"filled"
Option to fill the interior of the markers, specified as "filled"
. Use this option with markers that have a face, for example, "o"
or "square"
. This option does not display markers that do not have a face and contain only edges, such as "+"
and "*"
.
The "filled"
option sets the MarkerFaceColor
property of the Scatter
object to "flat"
and the MarkerEdgeColor
property to "none"
. As a result, this option displays the marker faces and does not display the edges.
tbl
— Source table
table | timetable
Source table containing the data to plot, specified as a table or a timetable.
latvar
— Table variables containing latitude coordinates
string array | character vector | cell array | pattern | numeric scalar or vector | logical vector | vartype()
Table variables containing the latitude coordinates, specified using one of the indexing schemes from the table.
Indexing Scheme | Examples |
---|---|
Variable names:
|
|
Variable index:
|
|
Variable type:
|
|
Regardless of the variable name, the axis label on the plot is always Latitude
.
The variables you specify must contain numeric data of type single
or double
. The data must be in the range [–90, 90].
If latvar
and lonvar
both specify multiple variables, the number of variables must be the same.
Example: geoscatter(tbl,["lat1","lat2"],"lon")
specifies the table variables named lat1
and lat2
for the latitude coordinates.
Example: geoscatter(tbl,2,"lon")
specifies the second variable for the latitude coordinates.
Example: geoscatter(tbl,vartype("numeric"),"lon")
specifies all numeric variables for the latitude coordinates.
lonvar
— Table variables containing longitude coordinates
string array | character vector | cell array | pattern | numeric scalar or vector | logical vector | vartype()
Table variables containing the longitude coordinates, specified using one of the indexing schemes from the table.
Indexing Scheme | Examples |
---|---|
Variable names:
|
|
Variable index:
|
|
Variable type:
|
|
Regardless of the variable name, the axis label on the plot is always Longitude
.
The variables you specify must contain numeric data of type single
or double
.
If latvar
and lonvar
both specify multiple variables, the number of variables must be the same.
Example: geoscatter(tbl,"lat",["lon1","lon2"])
specifies the table variables named lon1
and lon2
for the longitude coordinates.
Example: geoscatter(tbl,"lat",2)
specifies the second variable for the longitude coordinates.
Example: geoscatter(tbl,"lat",vartype("numeric"))
specifies all numeric variables for the longitude coordinates.
ax
— Target axes
GeographicAxes
object | MapAxes
object
Target axes, specified as a GeographicAxes
object1 or MapAxes
(Mapping Toolbox™) object.
If you do not specify this argument, then the geoscatter
function plots into the current axes, provided that the current axes is a geographic axes or map axes object.
Name-Value Arguments
Specify optional pairs of arguments as Name1=Value1,...,NameN=ValueN
, where Name
is the argument name and Value
is the corresponding value. Name-value arguments must appear after other arguments, but the order of the pairs does not matter.
Example: geoscatter(lat,lon,"filled",MarkerFaceAlpha=0.5)
creates filled, semi-transparent markers.
Before R2021a, use commas to separate each name and value, and enclose Name
in quotes.
Example: geoscatter(lat,lon,"filled","MarkerFaceAlpha",0.5)
creates filled, semi-transparent markers.
The scatter object properties listed here are only a subset. For a complete list, see Scatter Properties.
LineWidth
— Width of marker edge
0.5
(default) | positive value
Width of marker edge, specified as a positive value in point units.
Example: 0.75
ColorVariable
— Table variable containing color data
table variable index
Table variable containing the color data, specified as a variable index into the source table.
Specifying the Table Index
Use any of the following indexing schemes to specify the desired variable.
Indexing Scheme | Examples |
---|---|
Variable name:
|
|
Variable index:
|
|
Variable type:
|
|
Specifying Color Data
Specifying the ColorVariable
property controls the colors of the markers. The data in the variable controls the marker fill color when the MarkerFaceColor property is set to "flat"
. The data can also control the marker outline color, when the MarkerEdgeColor is set to "flat"
.
The table variable you specify can contain values of any numeric type. The values can be in either of the following forms:
A column of numbers that linearly map into the current colormap.
A three-column array of RGB triplets. RGB triplets are three-element vectors whose values specify the intensities of the red, green, and blue components of specific colors. The intensities must be in the range
[0,1]
. For example,[0.5 0.7 1]
specifies a shade of light blue.
When you set the ColorVariable
property, MATLAB updates the CData
property.
Output Arguments
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s
— Geographic scatter plot
Scatter
object
Geographic scatter plot, returned as a Scatter
object. Use s
to access and modify properties of the geographic scatter plot after it has been created.
Tips
When you plot on geographic axes, the
geoscatter
function assumes that coordinates are referenced to the WGS84 coordinate reference system. If you plot using coordinates that are referenced to a different coordinate reference system, then the coordinates might appear misaligned.
Version History
Introduced in R2018b
expand all
R2022b: Pass tables directly to geoscatter
Create a plot by passing a table to the geoscatter
function followed by the variables you want to plot.
R2022b: Adding new plots to geographic axes does not reset basemap
When you plot into geographic axes by using functions such as geoscatter
and geoplot
, MATLAB does not reset the basemap. In R2022a and earlier releases, the basemap resets when you add new plots.
As a result, you can specify a basemap and then visualize data without using the hold
function between commands. For example, this code creates a map using the streets
basemap. Then it displays a scatter plot over the basemap. In R2022b, the basemap does not reset. In R2022a and earlier releases, the basemap resets to the default streets-light
.
lat = [35 -22 51 39 37 42 47 -33];lon = [139 -43 0 116 23 -71 -122 18]; figuregeobasemap streetsgeoscatter(lat,lon,"filled")
This change does not affect existing code that sets the hold
state to "on"
between commands.
To reset the basemap when you add a new plot, use the cla reset
syntax of the cla function before you create the plot. For example, to update the preceding code, use cla reset
between the calls to geobasemap
and geoscatter
.
lat = [35 -22 51 39 37 42 47 -33];lon = [139 -43 0 116 23 -71 -122 18]; figuregeobasemap streetscla resetgeoscatter(lat,lon,"filled")
Alternatively, you can change the basemap to the default streets-light
by using the geobasemap function. For more information about changing the basemap of geographic axes, see Access Basemaps for Geographic Axes and Charts.
See Also
Functions
- geoplot | geobubble | scatter | geobasemap
Properties
- Scatter Properties | GeographicAxes Properties | MapAxes Properties (Mapping Toolbox)
Topics
- Plots That Support Tables
- Create Maps Using Latitude and Longitude Data
1Alignment of boundaries and region labels are a presentation of the feature provided by the data vendors and do not imply endorsement by MathWorks®.
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