Ján ŠAŠAK

Space-time cube as a tool for visualization of terrain dynamics

Šašak, J.: Space-time cube as a tool for visualization of terrain dynamics. Kartografické listy, 2024, 32 (2).

Abstract: Terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) enables the acquisition of geospatial data on terrain geometry with high accuracy and level of detail. Repeated mapping campaigns produce a time series of geo-spatial data, which can then be processed to assess the change in terrain over the observed time period. At the same time, these types of data require innovative approaches to their visualisation that represent the dynamics of the studied surface clearly and understandably. Therefore, this pa-per aims to introduce the concept of a space-time cube (STC) as a tool for visualizing dynamic 3D geospatial data. The STC method is applied to a time series of digital terrain models of a landslide slope near the Belá River. The paper points out both the methodological aspect of STC creation in GRASS GIS software, but also the interpretation of data visualized in the form of STC. The re-sults allow us to visually identify the changes in the terrain geometry during the studied period in the form of vertical sections through the STC and isosurfaces of selected elevation values.

Keywords: terrestrial laser scanning, digital terrain model, terrain dynamics, space-time cube, spatiotemporal data visualization