16 Dec Best visual data of 2009: Britain from Above

One of Contrarian’s favorite websites, FlowingData, has produced a year-end list of the five best data visualization projects of 2009. Topping the chart is Britain From Above, a UK-based visual effects and animation company. FlowingData’s Nathan Yau describes the result:

GPS traces from taxi cabs and airline flights scurried to locations; telephone communications glowed in the sky; ground lights twinkled as if the roles of sky and earth were switched; and internet traffic burst from computer to computer. With all that data on display, patterns emerged – zero air traffic in no-fly zones and taxis taking alternate routes to avoid heavy traffic.

Initially, BBC blocked access to the resulting videos outside Britain, but some have recently become available in North America. Here’s a brief overview:

And a series of cameos on ships pouring through the English channel…

… air traffic over 24 hours…

… telephone traffic…

… and lastly, 400 London taxis viewed from above: