Whale Shark Tracking - NASA Space Apps 2025

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🦈 Whale Shark Tracking

This visualisation shows GPS tracking data for 41 whale sharks in the Gulf of Mexico (2009-2015). Each coloured line represents an individual shark's movement path over time.

🦈 About Whale Sharks:
World's largest fish species, reaching up to 12m in length. These gentle giants migrate vast distances following plankton blooms and seasonal feeding opportunities.

💡 How to Use:
• Click "🦈 Show All Sharks" to see complete tracking paths
• Use "▶️ Play" to animate through yearly periods
• Toggle individual sharks on/off in the right panel

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🗺️ Legend

🎨 Colour Coding
Each whale shark has a unique colour for its tracking path. Lines show movement over time, with markers indicating current positions.

🦈 Symbols

Start tracking position

Movement path

End tracking position

🎮 Controls
• Drag to rotate the globe
• Scroll to zoom in/out
• Use time controls to filter data
• Toggle individual sharks on/off

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📅 Time Period

🎯 Time Navigation

2009 2015

🎬 Playback Controls

⚡ Animation Speed

Speed: 0.8s

Fast Slow

🌍 Globe Background

🌍 Standard Earth (Day) 🌙 Standard Earth (Night) 🌊 Chlorophyll Concentrations (Aqua-MODIS)

Switch between day/night Earth views and ocean productivity data

📊 Whale Shark Tracking Statistics

Total Sharks: 41

Total Distance: 98,447 km

Tracking Points: 3,333

Average per Shark: 2,401 km

Time Range: 6 years

Average Speed: 23.7 km/day

Active Period: All Time

Longest Journey: 11,057 km

🌊 Gulf of Mexico Focus: 22°N - 30°N, 98°W - 82°W
🦈 Whale Shark Data Source: Movebank GPS Tracking
🌊 Chlorophyll PACE Data Source: NASA PACE Ocean Color Data Portal