Data Vis Dispatch, January 28: Snowfall, astronauts, and electricity
Welcome back to the 178th edition of the Data Vis Dispatch! Every week, we publish a collection of the best small and large data visualizations we find, especially from news organizations — to celebrate data journalism, data visualization, simple charts, elaborate maps, and their creators.
Recurring topics this week include freezing cold temperatures, astronauts, and clean electricity.
Submarine cables span the globe, and countries depend on their functioning. Recently, their sabotage has become more present:



The past week featured diverse visualizations in the environmental cluster. First: sustainability goals for organic farmland and CO₂ absorption and emission:


… second, increasing number of electric vehicles (at least in most countries), but uneven distribution of charging stations:

![Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung: <strong><a href="https://www.faz.net/aktuell/wirtschaft/schneller-schlau/verkauf-von-elektroautos-die-wichtigsten-daten-und-grafiken-110253880.html">Deutsche Autokonzerne beliefern 17 Prozent des Weltmarktes</a></strong> [<em>Chart description: New registrations of purely battery-electric vehicles</em>], January 27](https://datawrapper.de/cdn-cgi/image/quality=85,width=1420,f=auto,fit=cover/https://kirby.datawrapper.de/media/pages/blog/data-vis-dispatch-january-28-2025/67c0881796-1740123238/image13-3.png)
… and finally, a reduction in the share of coal in Europe's electricity generation, as well as ongoing subsidies for fossil fuels:


A perfect moment to switch to weather visualizations: U.S. weather phenomena have shifted from fires to rare record snowfall:

But visualizations of fires are not over, especially as the U.S. is not alone in becoming more prone to wildfires:


It's still January, so recaps of 2024 are still legitimate. Here fires and heat are prominent, too:
![Diario SUR: <strong><a href="https://www.diariosur.es/sociedad/espana-cierra-segundo-ejercicio-bosques-quemados-anos-20250124000253-ntrc.html">España cierra su segundo ejercicio con menos bosques quemados en 50 años</a></strong> [<em>Chart title: History of the area burned by forest fires</em>], January 24](https://datawrapper.de/cdn-cgi/image/quality=85,width=1420,f=auto,fit=cover/https://kirby.datawrapper.de/media/pages/blog/data-vis-dispatch-january-28-2025/a6fbe8a86a-1740123238/image23-2.png)
![InfoAmazonia: <strong><a href="https://infoamazonia.org/2025/01/25/mais-da-metade-dos-municipios-da-amazonia-passou-2024-inteiro-em-seca/">Mais da metade dos municípios da Amazônia passou 2024 inteiro em seca</a></strong> [<em>Chart description: Exceptional drought was detected in Tarauacá in August, a rare level that occurs when there is a combination of low rainfall, thermal and water stress</em>], January 25](https://datawrapper.de/cdn-cgi/image/quality=85,width=1420,f=auto,fit=cover/https://kirby.datawrapper.de/media/pages/blog/data-vis-dispatch-january-28-2025/2ef9ea1b47-1740123238/image24-2.png)

Certainly, visualizations about the U.S., and especially the decisions of the Trump administration and the people affected by them, won't stop anytime soon:


![Nexo Jornal: <strong><a href="https://www.nexojornal.com.br/grafico/2025/01/24/numero-imigrantes-eua-trump">O número de imigrantes não autorizados nos EUA</a></strong> [<em>Chart title: The number of unauthorized immigrants in the US</em>], January 24](https://datawrapper.de/cdn-cgi/image/quality=85,width=1420,f=auto,fit=cover/https://kirby.datawrapper.de/media/pages/blog/data-vis-dispatch-january-28-2025/e20f1509a4-1740123238/image25-2.png)
Social media influenced the election and was an issue in the election. It only makes sense that social media is popping up more and more in the visualization world:

![Der Spiegel: <strong><a href="https://www.spiegel.de/netzwelt/netzpolitik/geloeschte-inhalte-auf-tiktok-x-instagram-youtube-was-wir-nicht-sehen-sollen-datenanalyse-a-ca0629a1-16c4-47a3-a9fa-10b7c6b44ac2">Was wir nicht sehen sollen</a></strong> [<em>Chart description: Frequencies of reasons for moderation by platform operators from October to December 2024, by platform in percent</em>], January 25](https://datawrapper.de/cdn-cgi/image/quality=85,width=1420,f=auto,fit=cover/https://kirby.datawrapper.de/media/pages/blog/data-vis-dispatch-january-28-2025/f80f8767b1-1740123238/image18-3.png)
A quick excursion into German politics, where several demonstrations against the extreme right are planned in the course of the upcoming federal elections:
![taz: <strong><a href="https://taz.de/Lichtermeer-gegen-Rechtsruck/!6060166/">Die Demos gegen rechts sind zurück</a></strong> [<em>Chart title:</em> <em>Planned demonstrations against right-wing extremism</em>], January 22](https://datawrapper.de/cdn-cgi/image/quality=85,width=1420,f=auto,fit=cover/https://kirby.datawrapper.de/media/pages/blog/data-vis-dispatch-january-28-2025/05bb6b9c5a-1740123238/image4-2.png)
Last but not least in Politics: War and terror:



You know what sometimes is fun in data visualization? Charting people, be they astronauts, famous soccer players, or everyday people. And it is even more fun when we can find ourselves in them:



What do single-parent hotspots, rising jerky prices in Malaysia, and tourist apartments in Spain have in common? We don't know … yet, but they deserve to be listed here:

![El País: <strong><a href="https://elpais.com/economia/2025-01-24/dos-de-cada-tres-municipios-ya-tienen-pisos-turisticos.html">Dos de cada tres municipios ya tienen pisos turísticos</a></strong> [<em>Two out of three municipalities already have tourist apartments</em>], January 24](https://datawrapper.de/cdn-cgi/image/quality=85,width=1420,f=auto,fit=cover/https://kirby.datawrapper.de/media/pages/blog/data-vis-dispatch-january-28-2025/d37e61f2f5-1740123238/neu1.png)
![图懂天下: <strong><a href="https://newsgraphy.my/bak-kwa-price/">500克肉干竟已涨至上百令吉!这五年来通膨年兽"吃"掉了多少片肉干?</a></strong> [<em>Chart title: How many cases of soda can you buy with 500 grams of jerky?</em>], January](https://datawrapper.de/cdn-cgi/image/quality=85,width=1420,f=auto,fit=cover/https://kirby.datawrapper.de/media/pages/blog/data-vis-dispatch-january-28-2025/17d948f684-1740123238/image20-2.png)
What else we found interesting

Applications are open for...
- An academic employee for teaching AI skills in design and data science at the Interaction Design Lab at the Potsdam University of Applied Sciences
- A visual journalist at The New York Times in London
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