Satellites in Space by Nadieh Bremer

This (static) visualization shows the almost 3000 satellites that were still active in space around September 1st, 2020. By turning each satellite into a separate circle, but grouping them by the two most important variables, country and orbit, the visualization reveals a very detailed look into the satellites, who owns them, where they are and what they do. Revealing many aspects of each satellite, such as mass, age, class, type (communications, imaging, research, broadcasting, GPS, weather forecasts, etc.), while aiming to not becoming overwhelming to the viewer.

This visual was presented alongside the "Space Wars" article that was published in the November 2020 edition of Scientific American.