Josh Peek edited Enhanced Figures.md  over 9 years ago

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Historically, a figure in a paper is a static, in that it offers one unchanging view of the data offers wish to present. Often, though, adding the opporutnity to either manipulate a figure, or see it in context, lets a reader learn more. By using visualization software capable of outputing to formats that allow for interactivity, authors are not limited to a single view of a figure, and readers can explore beyond what an author-provided default view provides.  ## 3D figures  3D PDF is a standard fully supported by Adobe within PDF itself. It allows for a selectable sequence of views of embedded 3D objects, in which each view can have a subset of objects visible from a given vantage point. As the tools for creating 3D PDFs were spun off from Adobe itself a few years ago, it had become somewhat cumbersome to generate such figures. A [tutorial](http://www.astrobetter.com/tutorial-for-embedding-3d-interactive-graphics-into-pdf/) now exists that allows a user to generate a PDF with a 3D figure using LaTeX tools. 

## Images in Context  Most observational astronomy has the unique feature of having a specific map to which the data are attached: the celestial sphere. As such, it makes sense for us to attach our images to locations.  The AstroExplorer tool (cite) and the [ADS All Sky Survey](http://adsass.org) can allow images to be treated as data, in the sense that they can be "put back" on the Sky in context. Here's a sample, using an image from Barnard that is 100 years old (update). Click the caption's link to see it on the Sky in WorldWide Telescope.