Spatio-temporal mobility and Twitter: 3D visualisation of mobility flows

Abstract

Recent progress in computation and the spatio-temporal richness of data obtained from new sources have invigorated Time Geography. It is now possible to visualise and represent movements of people in a dual spatial–temporal dimension. In this work, we use geo-located data from the social media platform Twitter to show the value of new data sources for Time Geography. The methodology consists of visualising space–time paths in 2D and 3D in four study zones, with different land-use profiles, based on tweets compiled over the course of two years. The results provide a view of behaviours occurring in the areas of study throughout the day, with complementary data to show the population's main activity at different times.

Keywords

• mobility
• twitter
• time geography
• gis
• space–time paths