Below are the sources of Skylight’s map. Layers 2-4 can be toggled on and off to assist with the analysis of events.
Basemap (labels on land and water, before application of any layers): Mapbox
Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) Layer: Flanders Marine Institute (2019). Maritime Boundaries Geodatabase: Maritime Boundaries and Exclusive Economic Zones (200NM), version 11. Available online at http://www.marineregions.org/ https://doi.org/10.14284/386 .
12 Nautical Mile (12 NM) Layer: Flanders Marine Institute (2019). Maritime Boundaries Geodatabase: Territorial Seas (12NM), version 3.
Available online at https://www.marineregions.org/ https://doi.org/10.14284/387 .
Bathymetry Layer: TBD
Does Skylight change the names, labels, or boundaries of map layers?
Skylight does not change the names or labels of the information provided by the sources listed above. The designations employed and the presentation of this information on Skylight do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of Skylight or the Allen Institute for Artificial Intelligence concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries.
However, Skylight does perform some light processing that impacts boundaries, specifically simplifying the shapes of the files so the layer loads quickly in Skylight. Without the simplification there would be lag in the map loading, especially for areas with low internet bandwidth. The results of this shape simplification are most obvious nearshore where you’ll see the area does not following the coastline:
For a more precise EEZ or 12 NM Territorial Water area, we recommend
What should I do if I disagree with the map layers being displayed?
See if creating a Custom Area resolves your needs. Any areas created via this method will show under “My Areas” in the layer menu and can be toggled on and off.
Check if the upcoming improvements to Skylight (next section) would resolve your issue and email support@skylight.global with your response.
We can put you in contact with the organizations that currently manage these data sources to advocate for changes to their maps (Mapbox, MarineRegions).
Upcoming improvements to map layers
The EEZ layer and 12 miles layers were last updated in 2019 and some boundaries have shifted since 2019. We are working to update our default EEZ layer to the latest version in the next few months.
Long term, we would like to allow users to change labels and upload new files to replace what are visible by default in the EEZ and 12 NM layers. We are working on the requirements for this change, but do not have an estimate on delivery yet.