A heat map is a two-dimensional representation of data in which various values are represented by colors. It provides an immediate visual summary of information across two axes, allowing users to quickly grasp the most important or relevant data points.
In Luzmo, creating a heat map is straightforward. Click on Add Item, then scroll to the ‘Maps’ section and select the Heat Map from the map charts. Drag it onto your dashboard.
Upon selecting ‘data’ settings, you will be prompted to fill in two dataslots: geography and measure. Let's explore each one:
For a Heat map, you need geographic coordinates (latitude and longitude) to place the color representation accurately. Use Luzmo's public datasets with geographic columns or upload your own. You would need to have longitude and latitude columns in your dataset and create a Coordinates column from those, as explained in our academy article here.
While we recomment coordinates for this map type, topography data can also be used. However, please keep in mind that certain use cases (for example countries with multiple territories) may generate imprecise results, with the center of the topographical area being ouside of the main country area.
After adding your geography data, and linking it to your measure dataset if needed, you can just add your measure column to the Measure slot. The data will appear immediately on the map.
Once you’ve added your data to the geography and measure slots, the color representation will populate the map. Customize the radius and intensity in the theme settings to match your dashboard's look. You can also the change map style and other functions in the settings.
The heat map is versatile in terms on visualisation, as it allows customization not only about radius and intensity, but also around opacity and colors.
The heat map is similar to the choropleth map. However, the heatmap takes coordinates data, while the choropleth takes topography data. More information about all available map types can be found here.