Nighttime Lights in Venezuela

I extracted and processed satellite-recorded nighttime light (NTL) data to present monthly series for Venezuela at multiple geographical levels. I applied remote sensing techniques, code developed in QGIS and R, and calculations based on pre-processed open-access NTL VIIRS imagery from the Colorado School of Mines - Payne Institute for Public Policy.

Brighter areas typically indicate higher levels of urbanization, formal/informal economic activity, and population density. Conversely, darker regions may suggest rural areas, less development, or environmental factors such as protected zones or natural reserves. By examining its spatial distribution and changes over time, analysts can infer socioeconomic trends, urban expansion, and even environmental impacts such as light pollution.

You can select the state, municipality, and parish of interest to explore how average nighttime light intensity and lit area have evolved over time. 

The series cover April 2012 to January 2026 (last update: 715,605,582 pixels processed). This interactive app is hosted on shinyapps.io.

Global Nighttime Lights

I extracted and processed satellite-recorded nighttime light (NTL) data to present monthly series for countries worldwide. I applied remote sensing techniques, code developed in QGIS and R, and calculations based on pre-processed open-access NTL VIIRS imagery from the Colorado School of Mines - Payne Institute for Public Policy.

You can select the country, indicator, and period of interest to explore how nighttime light intensity has evolved over time. The project includes 9-month moving averages for all pixels and lit pixels, as well as monthly and annual percentage changes of these smoothed indicators.

These indicators are best interpreted as descriptive proxies of spatial and temporal light patterns rather than as direct measures of, for example, GDP, income, welfare, or electricity access. Higher values generally indicate brighter nighttime luminosity, while lower values may reflect dimmer lighting, larger unlit territories, rural settlement patterns, or environmental and geographic factors. By examining changes over time, users can track broad cross-country patterns in luminosity and identify medium-term shifts in nighttime light intensity.

The series cover January 2016 to January 2026 (last update: 102,512,689,026 pixels processed). This interactive app is hosted on shinyapps.io.