January 2021 Summaries

The Mapbox Mobile Maps SDK v10 introduces several enhancements for Android and iOS, including 3D map capabilities through new terrain, camera, and sky APIs, alongside improved performance and stability. The updated SDK architecture supports Metal on iOS, optimizing rendering with significant speed improvements, and embraces Kotlin and Swift for more intuitive app development. For Android, v10 improves map load times on lower-end devices through caching and transaction management, while also reducing network load with local glyph rendering. Navigation features benefit from optimized rendering and data filtering capabilities, and the SDK's pricing remains consistent with previous versions, offering a pay-as-you-go model. Developers can access the beta version now, with comprehensive guides and documentation available to facilitate the transition.

Mapbox Studio now facilitates 3D design capabilities, allowing users to create 3D maps without coding, featuring enhancements like 3D terrain, Sky layers, and an increased map pitch up to 85 degrees. Users can easily convert any style into 3D by using the Terrain dropdown, which adds DEM tiles for terrain elevation, and control the terrain's exaggeration with a slider. Additionally, the sky layer can be styled with the Land, Water, & Sky component, integrating with the Sky API to customize the skybox with atmosphere or gradient options and set sun positions. These 3D maps can be integrated with applications via Mapbox GL JS, with forthcoming support for iOS and Android, ensuring backward compatibility with 2D styles in older SDK versions. Users are encouraged to share their creations on Twitter with the hashtag #BuiltWithMapbox.

Mapbox Studio has introduced a Data Visualization component that integrates seamlessly with its 3D maps, allowing users to gain insights from data through enhanced visual storytelling. This new feature, available to all Studio users, supports various visualization types such as choropleths, 3D extrusions, data-driven lines, and circles, and it automatically suggests the best type based on the uploaded data's geometry. The component facilitates the design process by styling the map according to the selected data and offers curated color palettes that are accessible to colorblind users, with options for further customization to suit user needs. The integration aims to aid in understanding various phenomena, from flood risks and climate change to urban planning, by combining 3D terrain with data visualizations. To introduce users to these tools, Mapbox is hosting a live webinar where experts will demonstrate how to create maps using the component.

The text discusses the creation of a new tileset for open US aerial imagery by utilizing data from the United States Department of Agriculture’s National Agriculture Imagery Program (NAIP), which complements existing aerial and satellite imagery. This imagery, collected in 2018-2019 across the contiguous United States, offers enhanced 60 cm resolution compared to the traditional 1 m resolution and is accessible via the `mapbox.naip` tileset. The imagery undergoes color balancing and blending to ensure consistency, accounting for variations in collection conditions such as season and time of day. The NAIP data, which is updated every 2 to 3 years, is available through the AWS open data portal, allowing for regular updates with plans to refresh the data biannually. This initiative supports various applications, including fitness and agriculture, by providing reliable and regularly updated imagery, with the NAIP program continuing to deliver high-quality data despite previous threats to its existence.

In January 2021, Washington, D.C., experienced significant shifts in pedestrian and vehicle movement due to major events like the Capitol Riots and the Presidential Inauguration, as analyzed using Mapbox's Movement data. The anticipated large crowds for the inauguration did not materialize because in-person attendance was heavily restricted, with authorities implementing extensive security measures that resulted in the National Mall's activity levels dropping to those comparable to the early pandemic lockdown. While overall city activity remained at about 40% of pre-pandemic levels, specific events like the Prayer March on September 26th and the Capitol Riots temporarily spiked activity back to previous norms. Road closures around the inauguration affected traffic patterns, with some areas like the Francis Scott Key Bridge seeing a brief return to normal traffic levels, though others like DuPont remained below pre-pandemic averages.

Melissa Nixon has joined Mapbox as the VP of People, bringing her extensive experience from previous roles at Facebook and Google. At Mapbox, she will focus on recruitment, talent development, and human resources, aiming to enhance the company's culture by accelerating hiring, scaling onboarding, and reinforcing diversity and inclusion. Her background in engineering-led environments and data-driven approaches at Facebook and Google has equipped her to design adaptable people systems and support high growth, which will be crucial as she helps Mapbox expand its operations and drive innovation. Melissa resides in Seattle with her family and enjoys traveling, reading epic fantasy novels, and engaging in outdoor activities.

Mapbox has completed a significant update to its satellite imagery, refreshing 135 million km² globally and adding 9.8 million km² of new 50 cm resolution imagery across the United States. This high-resolution imagery enhances the viewing experience of iconic locations such as the Grand Canyon and Yosemite, and provides detailed visuals for practical uses like documenting bike rides, confirming delivery routes, and exploring neighborhoods on social media. This update represents the largest imagery addition by Mapbox to date, and the team plans to further enhance the imagery by improving 3D integration and refining color processing and blending techniques to enrich user interaction and experience.

Retail businesses globally are leveraging Mapbox Movement data to navigate the reopening and recovery of brick-and-mortar stores, with PepsiCo using it to monitor COVID-19 impacts on store performance. Traditional market analysis reports often provide outdated insights, whereas Movement data offers near real-time information, updated daily, allowing businesses to establish pre-COVID baselines and monitor changes to identify "new normal" activity levels. A case study on Green Hills Mall in Nashville demonstrates how this data aids in deciding when to reopen stores by analyzing activity patterns before, during, and after closures, revealing a significant drop in activity compared to pre-COVID levels. Movement data also enables expanded analysis to surrounding neighborhoods and trade areas, providing insights into potential new retail spots and customer bases by integrating with Mapbox Boundaries and tools like the Mapbox Isochrone API. This dynamic data set is available for free download, offering retail owners a robust methodology to adapt to shifting commercial landscapes.

The Mapbox Tiling Service (MTS) enables the rapid processing and updating of extensive datasets into custom vector tilesets, enhancing map performance across various applications. By employing distributed and parallelized processing, MTS allows developers to create dynamic solutions for diverse sectors such as tracking wildfires, optimizing wireless hotspots, and visualizing real estate data. Notable implementations include The New York Times' detailed election maps, TripAdvisor's live social distancing app, and Stubhub's interactive stadium seating maps, showcasing MTS's versatility across industries. Clients like Deepblocks, Polaris Ride Command, and PreK.com have reported improved efficiency and ease of use, highlighting MTS's impact on cost reduction and performance enhancement. Additionally, Sustrans and Mined Amazon illustrate MTS's role in facilitating environmental monitoring and conservation efforts. MTS offers tools like Data Sync, Tilesets CLI, and API for easy integration, backed by comprehensive documentation and a library of best practice examples to assist users in leveraging its capabilities effectively.

Map customization in Studio, particularly with label styling, enhances map legibility and engagement by allowing users to adjust text and icon positions using the "Text offset" and "icon offset" controls. Users can enrich labels by incorporating data-driven fields and contextual text, like adding prefixes or suffixes, to create informative map elements. The text can be positioned accurately, and its color can be varied based on data-driven values, which is particularly effective when combined with 3D Terrain features. Experimentation with these labeling techniques can significantly enhance the visual appeal and functionality of geographic maps.

LandSearch utilizes 3D mapping technology from Mapbox to enhance the sales scouting process for over 10 million acres of land, providing buyers with a detailed view of property size, shape, and terrain. By incorporating 3D terrain maps and additional curated data, such as FEMA flood zones and USGS water features, LandSearch offers a comprehensive map-driven interface that aids buyers and sellers in exploring and showcasing properties. The integration of 3D functionality, made possible by Mapbox GL JS, allows for an immersive experience without altering existing styling or data, significantly benefiting real estate brokers and users interested in topography.

Mapbox GL JS version 2.0 introduces enhanced storytelling capabilities through its updated template designed for data journalists and digital storytellers, requiring no coding experience. The new release includes 135 million square kilometers of high-resolution satellite imagery and allows for the integration of 3D terrain, enriching narratives about topics like travel, real estate, and the environment. The update provides storytellers with more control over their content, offering features such as customizable layout positions, map transitions, marker colors, and the ability to trigger custom JavaScript functions for additional interactive elements. Furthermore, the template is backward compatible, enabling users to easily upgrade existing stories by incorporating new features like 3D terrain with minimal configuration changes.