An interactive GIS map answers the most important questions about the scale and pace of the epidemic.

10 February 2020 - The Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) at Johns Hopkins University (JHU) published  GIS application with an interactive map that provides real-time data on the spread of the dangerous virus around the world.

The GIS application is a dashboard developed on the basis of the Esri GIS technology ArcGIS Operations Dashboard, which integrates and visualizes epidemic data from the reports of the World Health Organization, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the National Health Commission for Human Health in China and other official sources. The aim of the dashboard is to provide up-to-date information and a clear picture of the situation, thus reducing the panic and confusion that usually accompanies each new epidemic.

With one click on the map, the application shows the number of the confirmed cases in each country, as well as data on the number of dead and cured people. Thus, each point on the map reflects on an area with registered cases of the coronavirus, and the size of the point shows the intensity of the infection. In addition to the data on the map, the GIS application presents a number of graphs and tables, from which the rate of spread of the infection around the world is visualized, as well as information for the individual countries in which there are registered cases.

“We built this dashboard because we think it is important for the public to have an understanding of the outbreak situation as it unfolds with transparent data sources. For the research community, this data will become more valuable as we continue to collect it over time,” said Lauren Gardner, a civil engineering professor and CSSE’s co-director at Johns Hopkins University.

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