Kate Pope
GIS and Cartography Work
Below are just a few samples of Kate’s work. This page is always growing - stay tuned for updates!
The Man From The Train
Developed as an infographic and based on Bill James and Rachel McCarthy James' book of the same title, The Man From The Train attempts to visualize a theoretical route taken by early 20th century suspected serial killer, Paul Mueller.
A network dataset was created from historic rail data, as Mueller used the sprawling US rail system to approach and flee crime scenes. A network analysis was then performed to determine which rail lines Mueller may have taken to navigate between the homes at which he committed his grisly crimes.
The most fascinating detail of the Mueller case is that these murders were not connected until over 100 years later. Bill James and his daughter Rachel McCarthy James performed extensive research in order to not only connect the crimes, but determine an incredibly likely suspect in Paul Mueller.
The story of The Man From The Train is a classic example of the human ability to find order from chaos, and proves that even the most confounding mysteries can be solved - all we need is enough time and the right tools.
The Effects of Slope and Aspect on Vegetation Recovery Following a Wildfire
In the summer of 2003, two wildfires started in Lincoln and Jefferson County Oregon, on either side of the Cascades. The two fires eventually joined together, and formed a single wildfire known as the B&B Complex Fire, which burned along the crest of the mountain range. The fire and its subsequent recovery of vegetation offers a unique research area, due to the relatively even distribution of aspect along the mountainous slopes.
To analyze the effects of slope and aspect on vegetation recover after the B&B Complex Fire, two types of remotely sensed imagery were used: satellite imagery collected via the LandSat system, and a 10-meter DEM produced by the Oregon Department of Forestry.
NDVI analyses were performed on satellite imagery from five separate years over a 20 year period: 2004, 2009, 2014, and 2024. These analyses were performed individually, in order to determine the unique NDVI threshold for each image.
Zonal statistics were gathered regarding vegetation coverage for each year, each zone determined based on its unique combination of aspect and slope. Differences were calculated between each year, in order to determine how vegetation coverage changed over time.
A Witch’s Guide to Crater Lake
An exercise in cartographic techniques, A Witch’s Guide to Crater Lake reimagines Oregon’s only National Park using publicly available data from sources such as the US Geological Survey and iNaturalist.
Plants and flowers are symbolized as potion ingredients based on their imagined magical properties. Animal sightings have become locations where one can find a familiar. Geological points of interest within the park are noted as areas of concentrated supernatural energy.
In spite of these fantastical concepts, thorough geospatial analysis was performed in order to display the final result. Data points were aggregated into polygons based on their highest levels of density. For animal sightings, a geographic centroid was determined from these areas.
Designing the map’s hillshade, however, did take some creative thinking to achieve the desired effect. A hillshade was generated using a digital elevation model, exported as a GEOTiff, and edited in graphic design software to simulate a hand drawn appearance.
More Work Coming Soon!
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